Symphonies of Souls
by SketchLex
Summary: A later generation of meisters and weapons team up with some old friends at the Death Weapon Meister Academy to fight against rising evil in Death City.
1. Prologue: Katy and Christian

**Prologue: Katy and Christian**

Katy looked around at the foggy darkness that surrounded them that sank into the valley of every hill and shrouded almost all of the trees ahead of them. Her teeth were on the verge of chattering but she wasn't cold. The soles of her shoes stepped as soundlessly as possible on the dusty earth below her while still trying to keep up with his pace. He, of course, was strutting along carelessly, whistling some tune with his hands in the pockets of his dark pants. His boots scuffed along with no discretion, just like the rest of him. She sighed to herself. He wasn't scared of anything. How was this going to work?

He turned around to look at her. "Something wrong?"

He must have heard her sigh. She shook her head. "Nothing. I mean, no."

With his hands still in his pockets, he stopped and waited for her to reach his side before he kept walking. "Cold?"

Katy shook her head again.

"Got the jitters, huh?" He smiled a little bit.

She didn't care for that smile right now. She wasn't a child to be pitied. She wasn't a display for everyone to gather around and say, "Aw, look at her, she's so innocent. She doesn't wanna hurt anybody." Katy threw her chin up a significant amount. "No. Just thinking about commencement."

"Good! What you got?"

"Uhm… Still thinking." Her eyes drifted away from him.  
He shrugged. "Okay." The tune that he had previously been whistling continued.

She wanted to ask if they should be quiet. It seemed like that was a bright thing to do at this point. They were about to face a very hungry demon that was just as much after their souls as they were after its soul. But he had been in probably a thousand more battles than she had been. She dare not insinuate that he shut up and do what she says.

He stopped and looked back at her again, this time with a harder expression.

She stopped and looked at him, her eyes going a bit wider with the question: What?

"You're always walking behind me. I'm not your mom at the grocery store."

She giggled politely. "Sorry."

"Don't be sorry. Just act like we're partners. Come on." His generous hand motioned her up next to him.

Katy neared his side and walked next to him quietly, her arms by her sides. It took a faster pace to keep up with his stride, his legs being so long. In weapon form he was tall as well and a pang of nervousness struck her again at her lack of experience with a long weapon. Mira, her previous weapon, was a kunai knife who transformed into a manriki gusari with blades. Close range combat really was close range. She was used to that and being able to switch hands in a blink, flip and throw, slash and backslash. . . Before she met Christian, she didn't even know what a naginata was, much less how to use one. It was probably the worst transition one could possibly make when switching weapons. She missed Mira. She was her comfort zone. But Lord Death insisted that she be reassigned and that Katy was limiting herself.

Christian stopped again and looked upward at the low hanging branch of a tree that very much symbolized an entrance. "He's godda be dead ahead. You figure out commencement?"

Her stomach churned. "Sure, yeah. Just um…wait for him to make a move, and go in hot?"

"Sounds good to me!" He closed his hand around his fist to pop his knuckles. "Let's go. Forward march."

Katy didn't step forward just yet.

As if he expected as much, the tall blond young man reached back for her wrist and took it before pulling her under the low hanging branch. "Come on," he coaxed.

She swallowed. "Yeah, yeah. Right here." Katy trotted up by his side again.

The fog grew denser, not only visibly but she could feel it weighing down the air around her, making it harder to breathe even. This would affect the battle, she was sure. She would have to rely more on her hearing than her sight, which wasn't typically a problem. But this also meant that close range combat was going to be more difficult as well. She tried to think of all the possible stances and positions, strikes and moves, turns and twists that she was likely to encounter with this target. Did she practice the 'flip and jab' enough? Oh crap! No! She didn't go over that one yesterday! Oh, and she was bound to need it this time. She was sure of it. It would be her luck anyhow. Great. Just great. This is exactly what she needed. Right now. At this moment. Quickly she tried to think of the movement of her feet, how she was supposed to lean and push herself up and over her opponent.

A flicker of movement caught her eye with a beastly hiss of a breath from behind a tree. Her heart jumped up into her throat. No more time to think.

Christian pulled his hands out of his pockets. "Hey!"

A snarl sounded and echoed through the foggy forest, reverberating off of every tree and bouncing back to her ears. Katy forced her teeth to stop chattering as the adrenaline began to race through her veins, immediately forgetting most of her qualms and discomforts. Most of them.

A gray body stepped out from behind the tree with black liquid dripping from its malicious, long fangs. Dark brown hair shining with oil strung in its face and reacted to its growling breaths and black veins showed through its paper-like skin.

Katy stared at him while holding her breath before Christian elbowed her. She jumped a little and cleared her throat. "I'm Katy the weapon meister and this is my weapon, Christian. And we've come for your soul."

The demon's shoulders began to tremble as its growling breaths got louder, the glowing yellow orbs piercing through its hair and the fog into their faces. Its maw jerked open and emitted an ear-splitting shriek of challenge along with a few dribbles of inky liquid as it stretched out its clawed hands and set its legs apart.

"Sounds like acceptance to me. Rock and roll, Kate." Christian stuck his arm out beside him.

Katy huffed a breath out hard before striking out her own arm and grabbing his forearm. His fingers wrapped to her forearm and swung her around in front of him, bringing her to his opposite side. Her feet slid across the ground, throwing up a cloud of dust that mixed with the fog as his arm suddenly shone a blinding white light and began to shrink in diameter. Her feet stopped sliding in the dirt and her thumb could now reach the rest of her fingers with a firmer grip. Christian stuck straight out from her side now as a five foot long black shaft with a three foot long jagged blade on one end. Her dark brown hair ceased to sway in front of her eyes that were locked on the demon's figure. "Let's go."

A shining black tongue snaked out of the beast's teeth as it let out another disgustingly wet gurgling growl before it lunged forward, throwing its head and slinging its hair.

With swift and light steps, Katy raced forward, twirling Christian back to her right hand and taking the first jab. The demon jumped up above the fog to avoid her strike which Katy reacted to by rolling forward. When the target landed, she slashed at its back only to be deflected by its long black claws that sounded their contact through the trees. She advanced with a parry and another slash. Minutes passed and the demon ducked and dodged, backing away from her and flinging up its claws to deflect again before making a strike of its own. Katy spun Christian around to meet every one of his slashes. When it couldn't step back far enough, it launched itself into the air once more.

"Hrah!" Katy pounded the end of the shaft into the dirt and flung herself up, doing a somersault and twirling Christian next to her, meeting the demon at the same level in the air. "Rah!" Her left hand pushed the shaft forward while her right pulled in the end towards her, slinging the jagged blade at the demon's throat and landing a slice on the side of its neck.

"RAAAGH!" The demon fell back down to the ground, leaving a trail of black blood in the air behind it.

Katy came down on her feet in the dirt and immediately positioned her weapon back in front of her horizontally.

"Hey, nice one!" said Christian's voice that came from the blade, sounding as if it were coming from some kind of invisible speaker.

The demon threw itself back up to its feet in a blind fury and tore across the ground, racing towards her in almost an aimless rage.

"Katy, look out!"

She flung Christian around to her right side where the demon was heading but by the time she had, the beast had vaulted to the tree next to it and ricocheted off of it, now spearing towards her left side, claws first.

"Ah!" As quickly as she could, she flung Christian around to her other side, the shaft meeting the demon's forceful slash. In a blink, her partner slipped out of her grasp and fell to the dirt several feet away.

"Oof!" Christian's voice from the blade again.

The target landed on top of Katy, its tongue shooting out towards her face. Katy kept her foot against its chest and her arms held off the rest of it. "Ah!" She squeezed her eyes shut and turned her face away from the tongue as some of its foul smelling juices dripped onto her cheek. The demon pressed down harder on her body with a sharp hiss and rolling growl.

"Hold on!" Both the shaft and blade began to glow white until his form changed back to human. Christian raced towards them and sprang up above the fog and the lower branches of the trees around them, immediately glowing white again.

Katy kicked the demon hard in the chest, throwing it back a bit but not long enough to escape. The beast pounced right back into position and opened its teeth around her face. She let out a wail of desperation, her muscles shaking under its weight and force.

Christian dove down at an angle, his blade spearing towards the demon and sticking right into its back with a spray of black.

"RRRAAAGH!" The target jerked backwards and its shriek turned sharp.

Katy jumped at her chance to scurry out from under the beast and put distance between them. The demon continued to thrash about until it successfully flung Christian out of its back and it into a tree. She scrambled to the trunk of the tree and snatched up her partner, her heart thundering as she spun him back into the proper stance.

The demon turned and tore off through the trees, screaming all the way and leaving a cloud of dirt to settle.

Katy panted and entertained the thought of chasing it for a moment before she realized it was moving too fast and there was no possible way they could hope to catch up with it. Her palms were sweating and the rest of her was shaking as she stood in the fog and watched their twelfth soul run away. She lifted Christian closer to her and looked at the shining flat of the blade. "Are you all right?"

His face and naked shoulders appeared as a small reflection on the metal. "Yeah, I'm fine. Are you okay?"

She nodded despite her knees that were close to knocking together. Shortly her chin began to quiver.

He frowned at her. "Oh—now come on… Don't—don't do that,"

With a squeak, Katy plopped down in the dust with her weapon in her arms and began to cry, bowing her head so that her face wasn't visible to him.

"Hey… Hey now… It's okay! We'll go grab another mission, no big deal! We're okay!" he said in a bright, happy tone.

Tears rolled from her eyes as she leaned her head back. "I'm a terrible meister!"

"No you're not, you're a _great_ meister! This was a bit of a setback, but it's just one soul! We'll get the next one, okay?"

Sniffling, she looked down at him. "Christian, I don't think I can be your partner. This is all wrong, it's just wrong."

His brow furrowed in the blade before it glowed white. She set him down on the ground and used her glove to wipe some tears from her face as he changed back into his human form, sitting in front of her. "Now, why would you go and say something like that?" he asked gently.

Along with a few tears, she removed the black liquid on her cheek as well. "You deserve someone who can handle you better than I can. If you had someone else besides me, you could be a Death Scythe in no time."

"I don't think that's what it's about."

She looked at him with moist and reddened eyes.

Christian shrugged. "Yeah, it'd be cool. But this is just as much your time to shine as it is mine. And I definitely can't shine by myself. Just like you can't by _you_rself. Not in this business!" he chuckled.

Katy sniffled again. "But…you could find someone better than me."

"Listen to what I'm saying. I don't want anyone else."

She blinked away another tear, her eyes shining up at him.

"I want us to do this together, all right?" He put a hand on her shoulder. "You're gonna get better. I know you will. That was really good! He just caught you off guard, it happens."

With yet another sniffle, she wiped her eyes again. "Yeah, caught off guard… Except it could have gotten us killed."

He smiled. "But it didn't. Not this time!"

She couldn't help but crack a smile of her own and giggle.

"We've got time to practice. We'll go grab another mission and get right back to work, okay? Everything will be fine." He stood up and reached for her hand.

Katy blinked at his hand before taking it, letting him pull her up to her feet. "Thanks," she smiled.

Christian winked and put his hands back in his pockets as he did before, walking back the way they had come. "That was a pretty sweet slice, though. Very cool."

She laughed a little. "I doubt that's going to count for anything once we get back to the academy."

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's all good."

She looked up at him. "Is there anything you ever worry about?"

"Yeah, actually. We're gonna miss supper and I am starving."

Katy giggled again and walked on beside him out of the foggy woods.


	2. Prologue: Tim and Nikki

**Prologue: Tim and Nikki**

His eyes scanned over the scene below with the sharp observation of a hawk. They were scattered about on the ground, calling out their victory to the sky above and proclaiming the reward of their kill. Some of the monstrous-looking beings removed their masks to howl at the moon, revealing their scarred-beyond-repair and scabbed features. The moonlight shone on their cold, clammy skin that was tinted blue from their undead state. Gray claws reached up and around them and plucked the glowing blue orbs right out of the air like picking plums from a tree. The beastly barbarians dangled them over their open jaws by a ghostly white wisp before long, blood red tongues unfurled to cradle the delicate, innocent orbs before drawing them in between their saliva-strung teeth and closing their maws. With slurps of satisfaction, each light blue orb was gobbled down, their glowing light forever snuffed out in the pitch darkness of the beasts' bellies.

"So disgusting," she whispered next to him. "Look at them. Despicable creatures."

He spoke in a low, even tone. "This is what happens when you dig yourself into a hole that's too deep to get out of."

"Taking innocent lives just to keep your own pathetic life." She soundlessly adjusted her crouching position on the branch next to him.

"On less severe standards, that's pretty much how the world goes 'round." He scooted closer to the edge of the thick limb.

"Let's scatter 'em like cockroaches," she said with a sneer in her voice.

He took in a quiet breath and jumped out of the tree, landing behind all of the feasting fiends. The masked beings all whirled around to face them, some slinging strings of spit as their heads turned.

She jumped and landed beside him, her black shiny hair the last to come to rest. Ten to twelve putrid, once-human monsters faced them with milky and hungry eyes. The bodies of their kill still lie around all of their feet and one of the undead let out a wet belch. Her sharp blue eyes stabbed at the offender. "You are beyond sickening."

The apparent leader of the pack stepped forward with an ogre-like growl.

He thought to himself as he looked over the bunch: "We might actually be doing this lot a favor by killing them." He spoke to all of them. "You won't be stealing any more innocent souls."

The leader's jaw stretched open and howled out his protest, his shoulder muscles bulging.

She lowered herself to a spring-loaded stance. "Your souls are ours." She reached a hand out to him.

He reached back to his partner and with all his might he flung her forward towards the foes. She somersaulted past his head and her body whirled with a white light, leaving streaks in the night air until all of her was consumed in the rotating glow. Her form morphed in the light and five blades sprouted from her center as her partner raced after her with alarming speed.

The leader spouted a cry of agony when a black and silver, five-foot-diameter shuriken stuck firmly into his chest with spurts of dark red. The great beast staggered backwards as his comrades shrieked.

He ran and jumped up high and drove his boot into the leader's chest and wrapped his fingers around the handle in the center of his weapon. As his body fell back, the weapon meister jerked the lodged blade out of the clammy flesh and back-flipped, using the leader's chest as a launch pad, and landed on the ground again, spinning his partner beside him to prepare her for another strike.

The fallen leader's comrades now rushed towards him, all closing in to the middle. He released a clam breath and slid one foot around in front of him, creating a perfect momentum to swing his partner around. In a nearly perfect circle, the creatures began to fall with blood slinging from their necks, chests and stomachs. He spun completely around, rising until he was standing again and a halo of bodies surrounded him, fallen and dead or soon to be dead. A few of the ones who survived the first strike raced forward again. He jumped and spun his weapon, slicing and slashing his way through all of the pack. Before his opponents could even offer their first strike, they were met by her deadly blade and his unmatchable skill and speed. All around the hill there were cries of agony and challenge. He continued to jump and slash, spin and slice, juke and stab, bouncing around the hilltop with grace and precision. The once-human creatures began to drop in almost a timed rhythm as he struck them down with ease. One of the targets would come from the left and he would duck and send an upward stab into its gut, followed by flipping and bringing his heel down on the next target's head and a slice on the neck, followed by vaulting off of that target and onto the next to slice yet again. His enemies were falling beneath him without him actually touching the ground much at all. His weapon spun and twirled every direction he willed as well as transformed into a kunai knife when need be. The air was filled with the smell of rotten blood and putrid last breaths until the sounds died with their emitters.

He landed on the grass with a solid thud, rising up to his full height with his partner still in hand. A soft glow had now illuminated the hill by little floating red orbs. He released a breath. "Good job, Nikki."

His weapon shone a bright with white before taking her feminine human form once again. "Thank you, Tim," she smiled, her hungry eyes looking at all the floating souls.

He stretched a little, looking at all the fallen bodies. "Bon appetite,"

"Mm-mm! Indeed." Nikki stepped forward and picked the first red orb out of the air. She opened her mouth dropped in the delicacy, chewing delightfully before swallowing all of its light. She sighed in satisfaction before going to all of the rest, eating them all like fruits from a tree.

"Not a bad turn out considering the circumstances, huh?" He said, sitting against the trunk of the tree as he waited for her to finish her meal.

"What do you mean?" she responded with both cheeks full.

"Have you noticed we're running out of missions that are suitable for our rank?"

She shrugged. "This one was pretty easy, I have to say. But I'm not worried about it. We've got enough work to keep us going. Besides, I've been enjoying the breaks as they come."

"It just seems like there would be more that Lord Death wants us to do. Of course with the East in the state that it is, maybe he doesn't want to send students right in the line of fire." He looked down between his legs, smoothing out his short black hair.

"Well, if we keep proving our worth with missions like these, maybe we'll be in the East sooner than you think." She swallowed another soul, this time with a bit of a slurp. "Hmhm… Excuse me."

"It would be interesting to be sent over there, wouldn't it? Right where all the big stuff is happening?"

She turned to him with a sigh. "Timothy."

He looked up at her with a confused expression. "Nichole?"

"Why do you keep talking like you're not going to get these opportunities?" she said as she approached him, licking her fingers from the last soul devoured.

He looked back down again, playing with a blade of grass. "Just don't want to get my hopes up. I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than get the wind taken out of my sails."

"But you have to be confident. Look at you. You're the most envied weapon meister at the academy. Weapons everywhere would tackle a banshee with a frying pan just to be yours."

His eyes lifted back up to her face, blinking once. "I am confident. But I'm also aware of the very real possibility that we won't be chosen even after I make you a Death Scythe."

Her mouth went crooked and she shook her head at him. "You're more than competent and you're entirely too modest." Her fingers purposely went through his black hair to mess it up after he had just smoothed it into place. "And we'll get there."

Tim fixed his hair again with a sigh. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes. Let's go see what's next." Nikki started down the hill and Tim followed.

Upon arriving at the academy, the team was greeted by several friends who would give him a pat on the back or shake his hand before he went on his way, congratulating him for his most recent victories. The duo continued down a long hallway where they walked through the large double doors that stretched all the way to the ceiling. This room wasn't really a room. It was more like a floating platform in the middle of a blue sky, Death's mirror at the end of it across from them. Nikki and Tim went up the steps and found that Lord Death already had company.

His shadowy, jagged cloaked figure that was much like a starched sheet of paper loomed over another couple, nodding in acknowledgement with his empty black eye sockets looking down at them. Tim recognized the girl from behind immediately and barely pursed his lips.

"Hey, C!" Nikki called, "Back so soon?"

Christian and Katy both turned around and Lord Death looked up at the same time. Katy's eyes glinted and shined a little upon seeing Tim. His did the same for a moment as he raised his eyebrows in acknowledgement at her. She barely had a smile to offer him at all. This typically wasn't a good sign.

"Tim, Nikki!" Lord Death bounced a little, his zig-zagged figure leaning from side to side. "Good ta see ya! How did your mission go? Did you collect all of those Kishin souls outside the forest?"  
Tim nodded. "Yes, sir. All twelve souls have been collected."

"Good, good! I never doubted you, of course." The headmaster's professor-like, young sounding voice bounced with his enthusiasm and pride in his students.

"Thank you, sir."

Katy turned to Tim shyly. "Hi."

He approached her gently. "Hey. How did it go?"

She sighed. "Well…"

Christian swept up and put an elbow on her shoulder. "Katy landed an awesome slice on this demon guy. You should have seen her. In mid-air, too!"

"We lost him."

Tim stared down at her a little. "You didn't catch him?"

She shook her head solemnly.

He looked up to Lord Death.

"Interesting how certain little things that can seem so insignificant out of context can turn into a huge advantage or disadvantage when being practiced. For you, Katy, it was that moment when he came from another angle. And you lost grip of your weapon."

She winced a little. "Yes, sir."

"You _dropped _Christian?! Hahaha!" Nikki giggled.

"Hey, hey, she didn't drop me, all right?" He stepped towards Nikki. "I was _knocked_ from her grasp." He stuck his nose up a little.

Tim watched their exchange before looking to Katy and lowering his voice. "You dropped him?"

"It—it was an accident! I didn't have—my mind on where…the guy was coming from and…" She looked away ashamedly.

"There's nothing wrong with a little bit of experience through defeat, Katy. Don't give up." Lord Death's large cartoony hand lighted on her back and patted gently.

"Thank you, sir," she said in a tiny voice.

"As for Tim and Nikki, I do not currently have any more assignments for you. You are welcome to take a break this weekend and maybe have some time to work ahead on some homework as you like."

"Thank you, sir," Nikki and Tim said in unison. Nikki turned to leave, walking after Christian. "I hate to say I told you so, but—"

"Hey, knock it off," he said quietly so that his partner couldn't hear. "She's got some confidence issues."

"That's what I'm talking about."

"She needs some time. We're going to train more."

"Are you jealous yet?"

"Of you? Never." He walked on, looking ahead.

"I was always for a little bit of in-good-fun brother and sister rivalry. But you're making it too easy. It's not as much fun as I thought it would be."

He huffed. "Keep talking like that, sis. I want to make sure you are unpleasantly surprised when we sneak up on you and I become a Death Scythe first."

"In your dreams." She shoved him a little.

Christian gave a playful shove back as they went on down the hall. Behind them, Tim and Katy were walking slowly out of Lord Death's office. He spoke in low, tender tones, knowing how sensitive a loss made her and how it quite literally ruined her day. "It's not so bad. It's really common. I mean, hardly anyone makes it through the academy without losing a guy. Heck, a lot of them lose the battle entirely."

"I know, I know it's just…I just didn't want it to be me."

"You tried your best. That's what matters." He shrugged.

"… I think everyone expects more from me because of Christian…and you."

He glanced at her. "Nah. People respect you. You're good. Very talented. You just had a bad day. Everyone has bad days."

"You never have any," she said quietly.

He sighed. "Is that what it is? Has Katy just had a bad day?" He playfully put his arm around her and pulled her in tight to his side, already making her smile. "Is it just so bad? Just too much for the Katy to handle?"

She giggled a little, but only a little.

He walked on with her under his arm. "How about dinner tomorrow. Would that make things better?"

She looked up at him. "We have homework."

"Then we'll have a homework dinner date. What do you say?"

Her smile grew. "Okay."

He kissed her forehead with a soft smile and walked on through the hall, her head leaned against his shoulder and her arm around his waist.


	3. Prologue: Odette and William

**Prologue: Odette and William**

Outside, she stood beside his motorcycle, her blue coat now buttoned around her. He stepped in front of her and mounted his vehicle, starting it and revving the motor a little as she smoothly took her seat behind him without a word. When he began to ride away, she placed her hands on his waist so she wouldn't be knocked off by his start. She was used to him speeding. The duo left the campus and went into town where the city itself was made of cobble stone and brick. He stopped in front of an old warehouse of some kind and put his kickstand down. She dismounted and began walking towards a dark alley where grumbles could already be heard. He followed a few paces behind her.

Sure enough at the end of the alley was a dark beastly form hunched over a bloody mass that she saw—upon closer inspection—was a mauled dog. With slurping sounds and smacking of lips, the seven foot tall monstrosity hovered over its kill, chewing on a bone and sucking off the meat thereof.

She stared at it hard, her heart tender for the stray dog.

"That's one of Kishin Carvalho's mutts," he said, standing beside her with his hands still hidden in his pockets.

Upon hearing their casual exchange, the beast threw its head by its long gray-ish neck to face them, showing three vertical slits in its face with red orbs in the middle. It opened its maw and let out a garbled shriek of challenge.

He looked to her to see if her mind had changed in the least, knowing what he would find regardless.

Her cerulean eyes stared at the beast's face without budging or even blinking. "He'll fall hard." She spaced her feet apart.

The monster's claws scraped across the cobblestone as it propelled itself forward, bounding across the alley and shaking the ground with its weight, a growl increasing volume in its throat.

He gave a little tug on each side of his black leather jacket. "That he will," he said quietly as he went to stand in front of her.

The beast continued to race forward, an inky black tongue flopping about outside its jaws.

He crouched down and reached behind him for her hand, his deep green eyes on the monster. She grabbed his hand and flipped over top of him, using his back as a launch pad. As her body somersaulted to his front, his hand began to glow white through her fingers. As soon as her feet touched down, his form had transformed enough for her to swing him over her head. Once her feet were planted and her stance was stable, the glow left his form, unveiling a seven foot long zanbato with a silver and black blade that was almost two feet wide. In a smoothly connected movement, she swung the giant sword up towards the beast's throat.

It let out a sharp snarl as his blade hacked into its neck, spurting black blood over the stone. In the monster's brief disorientation, she sprang up and flipped over its head, landing another slice on its shoulder while upside down. This time, her opponent's howl was much louder and filled with anger and frustration. It returned with a swipe of its razor claws. She blocked, planting her feet to sustain the hit. She glanced down when her feet slid back. She threw off its claws and feinted to the side when it struck again.

"Don't let it catch you off your feet," said his voice from the wide blade.

She ducked one of the monster's swipes and rolled again. "I didn't plan to!"

"RAAAGH!" The gray beast pulled back its naked, bloody wrist.

"It's a Kishin minion of Carvalho's, Odette, it's—"

The monster's black tongue shot out at her. She flipped backwards, letting it spear into the ground under her. Her feet landed flat on the wall as she swung her weapon to compensate her center of gravity. Like a rubber band, she shot off the wall, using her partner as a lever. With a spin, the toe of her boot crashed into its head.

"RRRAH!" The Kishin crashed into the back alley wall, destroying a dumpster with its impact.

She landed and looked into the flat of her blade, seeing a reflection of his face and naked shoulders. "What does that mean?"

The monster got back to its feet and knuckles like a gorilla and stared with its three eyes wide and its fangs bared. Its shoulders hook as its ribs expanded. They continued to push out until the bones fazed through its skin. The ends of the black ribs stretched out, pulling the rest of the skin on its stomach apart and revealing its organs inside. The bones quivered and spread out, opening like giant spider legs.

Her mouth fell open a little, eyes wide.

"That's what that means," said her weapon.

Its ribs shot forward straight towards her. Odette flipped out of the way and hacked down on three of the black bones, which were severed under the blade. Six more came from behind her on her descent, forcing her to awkwardly maneuver the zanbato to shield her shoulder and back. She spun thin and sharp to free herself as she landed, immediately crouching low. A bone beside her foot flicked behind her ankle, knocking her back as six more came from above to skewer her to the ground. Odette pushed herself backwards on her back to evade, blocking with her weapon whenever they speared down at her body. Finally there was enough room to roll.

"Look out—"

A rib stabbed through her coat next to her waist, pinning her. "Rh!" She swung her sword awkwardly but could not reach a range acceptable to free herself. Her partner's face appeared in the flat of the silver blade again, stretching his neck to see her. Four more bones pierced her clothes and began dragging her across the cobblestone. Odette struggled and flail, trying to escape but her zanbato was too big to maneuver this close. The monster hissed in satisfaction as her body was being reeled in to its open torso, black blood dripping from every edge.

"… Odette—"

She growled through her teeth as her shoulder entered the beast's body, pushing between its rancid lungs.

Her partner grunted when a couple ribs snapped around his blade and pulled him inward as well.

"Ugh!" Putrid black liquid dribbled down her forehead as the monster's ribs began to cage her inside next to its organs, squishing her so that her zanbato was useless. She sighed. Her hand began to glow blue, illuminating the insides of her smelly, dank prison. The light grew and popped with electric-like strings of static. With a powerful thrust, she jammed her glowing fist deep into its exposed stomach. An explosion of blue light blew her bright red hair about and collapsed the monster's insides.

It screamed and howled in the sudden shock of pain. The bones that encased her and her weapon now pushed her out and left her to spill out on the stone, sticky with black blood.

Odette quickly snatched up her zanbato and spun him into position as the monstrosity staggered backwards into the dented dumpster again. Without a moment's hesitation, she leapt into the air and kicked off the brick wall next to her, gaining more height to fall with maximum momentum. "Hrah!" She swung his great blade and sliced through the monster's neck with ease, landing steadily on the other side of it.

Immediately the beast's cries were squelched, its maw still hung open.

The weapon meister stood perfectly still, her stance automatically set for another attack.

Slowly the monster's head toppled over, sliding off of its neck with a rather disgusting, wet sound. It landed on the stone with a thud much like dropping a sack of potatoes. It rolled a little as its body followed, crashing down next to it and producing a halo of inky blood around it. The foul smelling liquid filled the crevices between each stone and flowed down the alley in hundreds of little streams. Soon a large red orb appeared above the corpse, its glow filling the alley.

Odette wrinkled her nose at the nastiness she had been covered in as her partner began to take his human form. He stood next to her and looked up at the floating Kishin soul that was the size of a large pumpkin.

"Damn. I godda eat _that?_"

"Excuse me, I'm covered in a Kishin's bodily fluids. Your complaints hold no merit." She jerked her arms to flick some of the grossness off of her coat sleeves.

William reached up to pull the big red orb down in front of him, wrinkling his brow at it. He looked back at his meister.

"Well?" She nodded at the soul. "Go on."

"… It's enormous."

Odette adjusted some of her clothes, brushing off more monster blood. "Tasty tasty."

He sighed, his mouth going crooked. Finally he opened his jaw wide and took a bite out of the jelly-like soul. After chewing and swallowing he repeated the process. Odette watched as he took his last bite. His throat flexed as it slid down into his stomach. All the light had disappeared from the alley as he stared hard into space, standing still.

She stared at him. "… So?"

For a moment he remained still. Then he belched loudly and cleared his throat. William tugged his leather jacket into place, turning to her and running his hand back through his shaggy dark hair. "Juicy."

Odette stared back the way they had come. "Cool. Let's go home."

He trotted up behind her. "Wait—" William caught up and carefully took her arm, turning her to him.

"What?"

He pointed to her side. Odette looked to where he addressed and pulled back her coat and lifted up her shirt. A bloody cut lay across her waist above her hip. "Oh," she reached to touch the edges of it.

"You should wrap it up when we get back."

"Yeah. And my new coat! Ugh." She sighed in irritation at the tear in her garment and walked beside him. They reached his motorcycle and she got in her spot behind him, being careful not to spread too much of the foul smelling stuff that covered most of her onto his jacket when she held on.

Back at the academy, a voice called her name before she reached Lord Death's office. Odette turned around to see Christian jogging up to them.

"Hi!" said Odette, waving her arm.

He stopped in front of them. "Afternoon!" He waved at William but donned his charming smile for Odette. "I would ask you how you are, but I already know you're fantastic." He flashed his pearly white teeth.

The redhead giggled loudly. William only kept walking with his hands in the pockets of his jacket again.

"Hey, I need you to check me again," Christian rubbed his hands together.

"Again? I thought you and Katy were working out fine."

"We—we are—just—please. Check me?" His green eyes pleaded her.

Odette sighed and stared hard at him, focusing on seeing him from the inside. Soon she saw a soft red aura glow from his chest, in the middle, a little orb that was the same soft red. Inside the orb shone a white light that was dimmed as if it were looking through foggy pink-ish glass. While staring at the orb, she felt all the warmth that radiated from it. From this she could also feel his confidence, his calmness, his integrity and peace. She could see it all swirling around and inside this glowing orb. Odette blinked to drop her focus. "Nothing's changed about your soul. It's still the same."

Now Christian sighed and looked down. "Dang it… Okay. Thanks."

"What's wrong?"

He put his hands in his pockets. "We failed our mission yesterday. She lost some focus or something and lost her grip on me. And, long story short, the target escaped and she started the whole 'I'm stupid and I'm not good enough for you' bit again."

"Oh." Odette was familiar with Katy's paranoia and lack of confidence.

Christian shrugged. "If she keeps it up, I don't know if I _can _stay with her."

"She just needs a mood boost."

"I've been trying! I've been trying to tell her that it's gonna be okay, it's normal, it happens, don't get so worked up and she listens to me for, like, five minutes."

"Just give her time. Wait until your next mission. You guys will pass and she'll be okay again."

He released a breath. "Yeah. Okay. You're right. Well, thanks." He turned to walk back down the hall. "Oh! You're both coming tomorrow, right? The party?"

"Yes! We'll be there!" Odette gave a happy thumbs-up.

"Awesome. See you guys there!" He walked on with his usual strut.

Odette waved goodbye and continued to Lord Death's office and spoke to herself. "Yes. The weekend is here."


	4. Prologue: Rachele and Kian

**Prologue: Rachele and Kian**

_(Sorry for the delay. This is the last prologue. We'll get into the good stuff in the next chapter!)_

An intense stare had ensued between the duo. Her hazy blue eyes had locked on his silver eyes, both sets narrowed to their best intimidation. Their hands were flat on the table and not one of them budged. Rachele eventually smirked, raising one of her rounded freckled cheeks up under her eye. "Just give it up, Kian. You can't win this one."

He didn't blink. "Don't think so?"

"M-m." Her eyes went wide now with her lips tightly pursed.

"We'll see." He nodded and held his breath. Her eyes turned serious again. Suddenly their hands struck forward and slapped the center of the table where the last French fry was lying on a napkin. Rachele snatched it up and shoved it in her mouth quickly. Kian smacked the table. "Ah, damn it!"

The auburn haired teen giggled as she munched her prize. "Sorry."

"Yeah, I bet you are." He grabbed his soda and stood up, taking a thick, vicious swig. "All right, you win this round. But you just wait. Next time it will be mine." He buttoned the front of his black suede jacket and fixed his tight red scarf that fit snuggly under his jaw over the collar. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yep!" she chirped happily as she took another drink of her soda before throwing it away with his. "Let's do this."

They marched out of town to the forest outside the suburbs where their last assignment for the week was. A shallow fog had settled over the foliage as the sun went down. Kian walked alongside her with his hands in his pockets. "Did you hear that?"

"Hm?"

"Listen." He stopped and pulled his gloved hands out and left them at his sides. There came a sound through the trees, low and deep. It sounded like a moan. Or a grumble. Maybe a snore? The two slowly kept walking with their eyes peeled and being sure to keep their steps light. Sure enough, curled close against a tree were two men sound asleep in the leaves. Their guns were in their belt holsters that lay next to them but not in immediate reach, Kian noticed. The duo looked at each other. "What should we do?" Kian whispered, a hand going through his fine nearly-white hair. "Should we just…kill them?"

"Would that be rude or…unfair to not even give them a fighting chance, though?"

The men slept against the tree, snoring audibly even as the two spoke.

"Wake them up." Kian nudged her.

Rachele glanced at him and cleared her throat.

The men continued to sleep.

She cleared her throat more loudly. Kian stood back and watched them. None of them moved.

"… HEY!" he shouted. Not only did Rachele jump out of her skin, but the men were also startled awake, sitting straight up with their shadowy eyes wide. They looked to the duo from where they sat on the ground, the fear showing in their faces. Kian gestured Rachele forward.

She barely rolled her eyes at her partner and turned her attention to them. "You're wanted for the destruction of innocent souls. Prepare yourselves to fight."

The men looked at each other, their fangs showing in their shocked expressions. Slowly they stood up and took up their weapons that shook in their hands. With a kick of leaves, the two bolted off in the opposite direction, hanging onto their hats.

Simultaneously, Kian and Rachele leapt up into the trees above, disappearing in a blink. As the mobsters checked over their shoulders to see if they were being pursued, the two landed swiftly and gracefully in their path, forcing the men to come to a sliding halt and lean on each other for support. The duo stood their ground.

"Escape isn't an option," said Rachele without blinking. She leaned forward and held her arms out on either side of her. Smoothly and lightly, Kian rolled quickly across her shoulders, his legs wheeling behind Rachele for perfect momentum, which soon emitted a bright light. Kian rolled to her opposite side, now in Rachele's hand as a long, fierce scythe with a white blade that bore a jagged crook near the shaft where two holes were pierced with silver rings dangling from each. With her weapon positioned straight out in front of her, she returned back to her previous posture. "Your souls are mine."

The men whipped up their guns and began firing wildly in her direction. Rachele raced forward and spun her scythe in front of her, the bullets clinking and clanging off of Kian's metal as she neared. With a sideways spin, she sliced at one man's hand, making his gun fly away. He withdrew his hand with a yelp and held it against his chest to stop the bleeding. The other man came from her right, aiming to strike her with the butt of his handgun. Rachele ducked and threw all of her weight behind her elbow and drove it into his stomach with great force. The skinny man was knocked off of his feet and left to slam into a tree trunk behind him. The weapon meister spun again and swung her ankle under the first man's feet. He tumbled to the leaves before he could reach his gun.

"Woo!" cheered Kian's voice from the blade of the scythe. Without hesitation, Rachele charged at the man on the ground, sprung into the air with her partner over her head, letting her momentum increase to double the force of the strike. This was it for him.

She came down with a potent strike, Kian's blade passing through the man's shoulder with relative ease before severing his arm from his body. While he howled in pain and Rachele found her ground. She spun again, letting her scythe swing three hundred sixty degrees and leaving his head to join his arm on the leaves. The rest of his body fell in a heap. Rachele whirled around to the other who was getting away—nearly out of sight. She took chase, zipping through the fog in hot pursuit with her weapon beside her. He must have found his gun again, for he now pointed it over his shoulder and fired. In order to evade the bullets, Rachele followed in a zigzag pattern, though not nearly at the rate she needed to catch up with him now.

"He's gonna get away. We have to resonate," said Kian from the white blade.

"All right." Rachele stopped behind a tree and grasped the shaft of the weapon in both hands, held straight out in front of her. The sound of the mobster's escaping footsteps fell away as she closed her eyes.

_A white room came into view when his eyes opened. A brilliant polished marble stage sat before him, furnished with a single white stool. The contrasting color among the nearly blinding white was a deep pleasant burgundy that shone from a cello leaned against its stand, accompanied with a matching bow. He took a breath through his nose and approached the stool, clad in a black tuxedo with a red vest. Kian sat down and positioned the cello in front of him, running his fingers smoothly up the strings before putting them in place at the neck. His other hand picked up the bow and delicately lighted it on the strings. He took a calm breath and closed his eyes. "Poltergeist." The bow glided across the strings and a deep, rich sound started to crescendo._

Rachele's eyes snapped open and they shone a brilliant glowing blue, pupils shrunk to tiny dots in the sapphire seas. Kian's blade and shaft turned white and started to grow, the blade elongating and curling a little more at the sharp end. The white light broke away and Rachele's weight shifted with her newly formed weapon. Her body faded into the fog without a trace.

The mobster looked behind him to find that his pursuers had apparently given up chase. He stopped and leaned over to catch his breath. A shadow weighted the fog around him—multiple shadows. He saw a blobby silhouette of the girl's figure and her weapon before him but also beside him and behind him. He quickly snapped upright and aimed his gun at one shadow and whirled around to another, his respiration turning rapid. "Show yourself!" he yelled. There was no response. None of the shadows moved or made a sound. He began to fire wildly into the fog, turning circles and calling out his frustration and panic. Bullets flew and the mist swallowed them up and the shadows began to disappear until none of them were left. He lowered his weapon and held his breath…

A thick but quiet swish sliced through the air, a mere whisper in the evening wood. The felon remained still and blinked. His eyes traced down to his middle were a spot of blood was slowly growing on the edges of his torn jacket. The fabric was separated in a perfect line. He looked up and blood unexpectedly cascaded over his bottom lip. He blinked again. The man's torso slid off of his hips and thudded to the leaves and the legs soon followed.

Rachele appeared from where he had first been standing, twirling Kian over her shoulder as he assumed his human form. He rolled his neck on his shoulders and looked down at their prize and the little red soul that hovered above the body. "Good work, darling." He picked the soul from the suspended space and pushed it into his lips with a single finger and chewed in satisfaction.

"Thanks. You too," she chimed as she followed him back to retrieve the first soul they had vanquished.

Kian looked at the time on his phone after eating the second orb. "Hey! We can still make it to the party!"

"Woo! … Race you!" Rachele darted off through the trees.

"Head start, no fair!" Kian ran after her.

Rachele pushed the door open to Christian and Katy's dorm and called out a cheery hello to everyone. Nikki, Christian, Tim, Katy and Odette all called hello back to her, all seated on the cushy couches and armchairs that lined the room beside a coffee table and a flat screen television. Katy hopped up and bounced toward her best friend and hugged her. "Hey, lovely! How did your mission go?"

"It was really easy, actually. The guys were scared to death of us," she chuckled. Kian nodded in confirmation with a smirk, pulling one of the silver studs in his bottom lip a bit.

"I don't blame them!" Christian piped up, "When you two resonate it gives _me _the chills." He took a drink of punch, leaned back comfortably beside Tim who was enjoying some chips and salsa with his cheeks full and preparing for another bite.

"Of course, you two are amazing." Katy smiled at them both.

"How did yours go?"

She inhaled and smiled with closed lips but said nothing.

Rachele frowned. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"Eh, it's okay. It's the weekend, right? We're partying, no negativity, just fun! I'll get you some punch." She trotted away to the bowl at the counter in the adjoining kitchen.

"Oh, thanks!" Rachele looked to her partner with concerned eyes then looked to Christian. The blond twirled a finger in one of his curls and winced, barely shaking his head. The signals were clear that now was not the time to ask what happened. She took her seat next to the other red head and thanked Katy when she brought her glass of punch to her and Kian. Odette smiled at her. "So glad you guys could make it!"

"Thanks!" she glanced at her hand that grazed her side. "Are you okay?"

Odette put both hands back in her lap. "Yeah, just got a cut from our mission yesterday. It's all right though."

Kian leaned forward from beside Nikki who was showing her twin brother something on her phone. "Who did you fight?"

"A low rank Kishin, actually. William said it was one of Carvalho's minions." She took a chip and dipped it in the tasty spinach and artichoke spread that her partner had prepared.

"Whoa, what happened?" asked Rachele.

"Something I had never seen before. It used its own bones like weapons. Spears. Stretched out from its body and shot them around. It was crazy." She crunched the bite casually.

"Sure you're okay? You didn't get infected with…" Kian's eyes narrowed a little.

Odette looked at him. "Even if I did…" She shrugged.

"Oh… Yeah, that's right you're…" He closed his mouth and glanced around. "… Where is he?"

She pointed a thumb over her shoulder down the hall of the little apartment. "In Christian's room."

"So, how is that…going for you guys?" He asked. Rachele's eyes repeated his question to her.

Her pink lips briefly pursed. "Fine, really. To be honest, I don't really notice it. I mean—I know it's there. But even when we resonate I can't…I can't feel it much at all. Maybe a little but not…significantly," she said with sincerity, holding her cup in both hands on her knees.

"Well, that's good… Isn't it?" Rachele asked carefully.

"I think so. He does a really good job of controlling it I think and that's why it doesn't seem to affect me much. Lord Death has been keeping an eye on our progress and I guess he's just making sure that it stays that way." She shrugged again.

"Of course. Nothing wrong with being careful," Kian said awkwardly. Everyone turned their attention to Christian's door when it opened and William came out into the kitchen and went for the punch bowl. A few hellos echoed to him and he nodded in general acknowledgement as he prepared a glass for himself.

Odette turned in her seat a little. "You come out to hang with us?"

"I have an appointment." William reached into the fridge and pulled out a hefty bottle of whiskey.

"An appointment? For what?"

"Professor Stein wanted to see me," he replied blandly as he opened the bottle and tipped it to his cup of punch. Kian eyed the steady stream of alcohol that seemed unending.

"… What for? It's like seven o'clock."

Christian lifted a finger. "Excuse me, why was that in my fridge,"

William shrugged and put the whiskey back and picked up his cup and headed for the door.

"O-okay, bye."

"Bye." He closed it behind him.

Christian looked about him to everyone else's bewildered expressions. Kian stared at the closed door. "Quite a chatterbox, isn't he."

Odette looked back at the duo and stuttered a little. "H-he's—got his own thing that he does and… He's okay, we're fine. What about you guys? You are getting a real reputation around Death City!" She elbowed the ginger.

Rachele noticed her quick change of the subject but dismissed it for now. "Eh, a little I guess." She tilted her head a some.

"Oh, stop being so modest. Yes you are! You're the most renounced Ghost Scythe pair at the D-W-M-A! That's so great! How have things been?"

Now Kian shrugged. "Pretty casual. Moving up in rank a little at a time. Though it does get pretty exciting when Lord Death sends us after low rank Kishin like you guys get to do. That's fun."

"Now what exactly is the advantage that a Ghost Scythe has over a Kishin?"

Rachele swallowed a bite of a chip before replying. "Kian's power is just more effective against them. Like any other weapon against a regular enemy. Not really an advantage per se but it just kinda evens the standards out for us."

"But the disadvantage is Rachele can't identify Kishin auras as effectively when we're together," added Kian.

"Why not?

Now he had a chip with dip on it. "Ghost auras feel very similar to Kishin auras. She can't always tell what's a Kishin and what's me."

Odette narrowed her eyes. "Gosh, that sounds dangerous."

"We're used to it. We do okay," Rachele said nonchalantly. Kian reinforced with a happy nod, chewing a mouthful of food.

She smiled. "Well, good for you. I wish you both all the luck in the world!"

Katy leaned across Kian and touched Rachele's thigh. "Me and Tim are gonna get going. We have a dinner-homework date."

"Oh okay. You two have fun!" The couple stood and waved goodbye to everyone and left the apartment. Rachele promptly turned her attention to Christian. "What happened?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Oh, you know… The usual." His sister giggled cattily. The blond rolled his eyes before going to get more sausage balls.

Rachele now looked to Odette.

She spoke quietly. "He asked me to check his soul again… I think they're both getting discouraged about working with each other."

The ginger sighed and looked down. She knew her best friend as well as Tim did. Handling any kind of loss was not her strong suit. "I hope they make it."


	5. Summons

**Summons**

William walked down the middle of the hall that was unusually vacant for a Friday night at seven o'clock. He kept one hand in the pocket of his black leather jacket and the other held onto his cup of thoroughly lit punch. He turned to Professor Stein's office door and knocked twice loudly, taking a casual sip of his drink and wincing a little at the burn in his throat.

The door opened. He was met by the tall, seemingly lanky scientist. There he was again, wearing that same lab coat that looked like Tim Burton put it together. However, there wasn't much about Dr. Franken Stein that didn't look like the influence of Tim Burton. Even as the door opened, the man had his big pale hand wrenching the giant screw sticking out of his temple. William's features tightened in irritation at each annoying click. "Just in time," said the professor in a smooth yet monotone voice. "Come on in." He stepped aside for him.

William entered the office, which he now discovered wasn't really an office at all. It all looked like a science lab. Test tubes, beakers, burners, utensils and containers of God knows what cluttered every surface—even the desk at which William assumed they would be having their conference. A terrible smell of formaldehyde was thick in the air and it turned his stomach. God, what did this man's _house _look like? Something told him ignorance was bliss this time. He took another drink from his punch as Dr. Stein passed him and took his place in his rolling chair at the desk.

"Have a seat, Will." The professor picked up a cigarette and leaned back in his chair.

"It's William," he corrected flatly.

Dr. Stein stared at him dully through the lenses of his circular glasses. He gave a slow blink. "William." He gestured gracefully to the chair across from him. "Have a seat." He watched him as he flicked his lighter and held the flame to his cigarette.

He sat down across from the teacher and held his cup in his lap.

The professor exhaled a dense cloud of smoke. It didn't bother William. In fact, he was eyeing the teacher's carton of cigarettes in longing. "How do you like it here at the academy?"

William nodded, his expression a gesture of unenthusiastic approval.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-six."

"And do you find your education here…" Dr. Stein softly waved his cigarette, "Beneficial?"

He nodded again.

"Not too young for you then, I take it?"

"I've never been to another school."

"Not even grade school?"

William shook his head.

Dr. Stein nodded as if he weren't surprised.

"I like the math courses here."

The professor raised his eyebrows. "Good. Good, I'm glad you're enjoying it. What else do you enjoy?"

"… The missions, I guess."

"The missions. Good. You're very good at them." He put the cigarette back to his lips and inhaled.

"Thanks." His attention was stolen by some unidentified creature floating like a pickle in a jar on a shelf right behind Dr. Stein's head.

"And how have you and Odette been getting along?"

He pulled his eyes away from the specimen and reached a hand under his shirt to scratch his broad muscular chest. "Fine."

"And out of the field?"

"Fine." He knew what this was about.

Dr. Stein nodded. "Great. Why don't you tell me more about how things are going with you two?" He leaned forward in his chair.

He shook his head and shrugged. "There's not much to talk about."

The teacher looked down at his desk and moved some papers and a scalpel. "Sure there is. How well do you match each other's soul wavelength?"

William's eyes traced more shelves behind the professor's head. "We're a good match."

"Why is that?" Dr. Stein pried.

He thought for a moment, staring elsewhere. "She gets me."

"She gets you," he repeated. "Do you get her?"

"I'd like to think so."

"What do you mean you'd like to think so?" he asked gently.

William's green eyes met his. "Is there something you really want to ask me, Professor Stein," he said with a hint of sarcasm.

The teacher stared at him. Their bright eyes remained locked for a moment before he suddenly sat back and chirped, "Yes. Have you noticed any kind of change in you, your partner or how a battle goes after resonating?"

"I don't know, we don't resonate a whole lot," he replied evenly.

"What happens when you do,"

"We keep it short."

"What happens while you're resonating," Dr. Stein helped keep their exchange to retorts now.

"Not much," William answered with heavy consonants.

The professor stared at him and exhaled another cloud of smoke. "How much have you infected her, William," His voice sounded out a mix of graveness and repressed entertained curiosity.

He stared back, eyes surprisingly dull. "Hardly. If at all."

"How do you know?"

"Because I would know."

Dr. Stein's chair squeaked when he leaned back more. He put his hands behind his gray head, the cigarette hanging from his lips and he spoke loosely around it. "Odette's a good girl. Very talented meister. As you know she can also see souls, which is a very helpful and…also burdening gift." William watched the man's brow barely wrinkle as he gave the screw in his head another quick couple of twists. "But the fact is you have infected her. All it takes is once. Black blood already runs through her veins because of you. There's no point in denying that, now is there."

William held in a snarl at his insensitive and almost mocking tone.

"I believe you care about her. I also believe that _you _believe that because you think you're in control of its effect on you that you're in control of its effect on her. And that's not true. You may have mastered matching each other's wavelength but you're still two individuals with your own souls and hearts." He tapped some ashes into a tray on his desk. "Hiding it may work for you but it may not work for her."

"It's not hurting her," he said thickly.

"Maybe not now but how long before it does?" He put his cigarette back in his lips and casually scratched his cheek near a surgical scar. "You don't want to hurt her, do you?"

"Oh, and you plan to help me with that, do you?" William finally combatted his snarky remarks with his own. "You? With all due respect, sir, have we not similar…permanent records?"

Their eyes locked again. A silence ensued that filled the space between them with equal thoughts of disdain. When the professor spoke, it wasn't the comeback he expected. "I'd like to try."

William held his gaze. After a moment, he decided he couldn't resist any longer. He reached across the desk for the carton of cigarettes. Dr. Stein simply watched him tap one out of the box and pick up the lighter to turn the end orange. The younger put the cigarette in his lips and deeply inhaled. He took his time holding the smoke in his lungs before letting it billow out between them. Finally he replied. "Will Miss Marie be a part of this,"

"Probably. And the current Death Scythe."

He flicked his chin up. "Who's that,"

The professor laid his cigarette in the tray. "Evans. Soul Evans. He'll be here tomorrow. Lord Death wants you and Odette to see him in his office in the morning. Eight."

The smoke wisped away from his lips before he nodded. "Okay." He stood from his chair with his cigarette and his cup. "I guess that's it then."

Dr. Stein dipped his head. "For now. Have a good weekend."

"Yeah." He turned and went out the door.

The professor watched him close it behind him. He inhaled and sighed a deep sigh before reaching to the screw in his head and torqueing it roughly.

"Ugh, no more! Don't make me do any more homework!" Katy flopped over in Tim's lap.

"That bad?" he said distractedly as he tapped his pencil to his notebook.

"Mhmmm," she moaned into his leg.

"Yeah, I think I have to agree. I can't focus any more tonight." He leaned back and drank from his water bottle. "Supper was good. Thank you."

"You're welcome. What are we gonna do tomorrow?"

"I've got a list. I didn't finish this page, so I'll do that. I need to go to town at some point. Pick up some things, run some errands. It's my turn to get groceries. You want to come with?"

"I would love to." She lifted her head and smiled at him, moving some of her brown hair over his thigh.

He smiled back at her. "Have I told you I like your hair like this?"

"Yes, I do believe you have." She winked.

"It's very pretty," he said in a playful voice.

"Thank you," she mimicked his tone. Their lips met tenderly.

The door opened to the small apartment and Nikki marched through. "Ugh, get a room, lovebirds."

Katy bolted up. "We _had _a room."

Tim looked up at her. "You done with the party already?"

"I actually left to get away from Christian painfully trying to flirt with Odette but I think now I actually prefer it."

Katy threw a pillow at her.

Nikki punched it away and walked on to her separate room in the apartment. "By the way, Lord Death wants to see us in his office tomorrow."

"Really? He just saw us a couple days ago," said Tim.

"He wants to see Katy and Christian. And Odette, William, Rachele and Kian. All of us at eight tomorrow." She flicked her black hair over her shoulder.

Katy blinked. "Why?"

She shrugged back. "Dunno. Maybe tell us good job and stuff?"

Tim's brow furrowed. "Weird."

"Yeah. Well, whatever. Goodnight. Keep it P-G out here, I don't want any nightmares tonight." Nikki entered her bedroom and closed her door before Katy could offer a retort.

"Guess our day starts early again tomorrow." Tim looked down at his girlfriend.

"If I had known that I wouldn't have stayed up this late doing homework. I wanted to sleep in!"

"I kinda wanna know what Lord Death wants with all of us though. Maybe it's good?"

She closed her eyes. "God, I hope so."

"It will be okay." He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

She returned it and sat up. "I guess I'll get going. Goodnight. I love you."

"Love you too."

Katy closed the door to the dorm and walked down the hall back to her own. She entered to find Christian starting to clean up after everyone had left. She helped him stuff the pizza boxes in the garbage sack and said goodnight to him and went to go get ready for bed. She was hoping this weekend would be uneventful and relaxing. After the week she'd had she was actually looking forward to hulling up in her bedroom with her homework and staying in her pajamas. Whatever happened at the meeting with Lord Death tomorrow, she prayed it was nothing that would cause her any more stress.


	6. Trail Mix

**Trail Mix**

_(Back. Sorry for delay. Finals and holidays. Hope you enjoy this one.)_

The chattering group opened the door to Lord Death's office and walked up to the platform where their headmaster was centered along with Dr. Stein. The Reaper was delicately sipping a cup of tea while the scientist puffed a cigarette. The students all bid good morning to their superiors.

"Good morning, good morning all! How ya doin'?" Death's head tilted to the side.

"A little nervous to be honest," Kian admitted.

"Are we in trouble?" added Christian with his hands buried in the front pocket of his hoodie.

"Should you be?"

"… Um…" The blonde's mouth scrunched up as he looked to his friends.

"The answer to that is no." Nikki glared up at her brother.

He shook his head and stuck his bottom lip out a bit. "Nope. No trouble."

"Then you're not." The Reaper took another sip of his tea.

"That's great news," said Katy with a polite smile.

"Indeed!"

The group watched him expectantly. The swirly clouds floated by them silently as they each tried to guess what his abyssal eyes were looking at. The quiet turned awkward and it seemed Death was frozen, the steam from his tea rising in front of him almost as if he were sitting on his porch enjoying a rainy afternoon. Alone. The younger ones started to exchange glances.

Dr. Stein cleared his throat. "Perhaps you should tell them why they're here," he suggested dully.

The younger ones stared at their headmaster.

"… Right!" He set down his cup of tea on the little coffee table before him and put his hands behind his back. "You all have been chosen for a very important assignment. I'm sure you're all aware of the trouble that has reared its ugly head to the East—outside of Death City. I need the eight of you to prepare yourselves to be my front line in the East."

Several gasps pierced the air and Christian sprung up with a pump of his fist and an excited holler. Rachele and Kian also expressed their excitement with each other. Odette smiled and William looked around with his hands in his pockets. Nikki squealed and slapped Tim's shoulder and he couldn't resist a smile either. He looked to Katy. She was smiling too. But his faded when he recognized that as her fake smile.

"That's great, sir! But why did you choose us?" Odette spoke up.

"You all have progressed so splendidly. Don't you feel deserving of this opportunity?" Lord Death asked sincerely.

"No, that's not it!" Nikki said quickly, "We've worked really hard, we feel like we deserve it. But…"

"We're not the highest ranking group. What made you choose us instead of, like, Michelle and Blake? Or Teagan and Timbers? Alex and Cicero?"

"Storm and Calkin," Katy muttered, eyes going downcast at all these names that had surpassed their year's goal already. Tim glanced at her.

"Yes, yes, they are all very talented meisters and weapons indeed!" the Reaper said cheerily. "Though I think you misunderstood what I meant when I said you all have progressed splendidly." The students all watched him take his time with another sip of tea. "Though you may not be the highest ranking students at the academy, you have remarkable ties with each other that no other group of students here possesses. I chose you all because you are the most effective team at the academy." He lifted a wide boxy finger in the air. "And teamwork is more valuable than any individual's talent."

It seemed as though everyone was caught off guard by this honorable compliment and it was only Rachele that squeaked a quiet, "Thank you, sir."

"You're welcome!" Death's head turned to his office door and stared expectantly. "Hm. Death Scythe is running late."  
"Not surprising," Dr. Stein mumbled blandly with his head bowed, rolling his cigarette between his upper and lower lip.

"Mr. Death Scythe is coming?" Nikki asked sharply.

"Yes, he was supposed to be here already." The Reaper looked to his students and set his tea back down on the coffee table. "Mr. Evans and Dr. Stein will be your personal instructors for the following assignment, guys.

"Instructors for what," said William, making his voice heard for the first time since they arrived. Dr. Stein stared at him, not bothering to hide the harshness in his eyes.

The headmaster promptly replied. "I want to make sure you all are prepared before you leave. There is time, so don't worry. But it is my preference that you all learn to match each others' soul wavelengths as closely as possible."

Christian looked around at the bunch that he arrived with. "…You really think we can do that?"

"Of course I do! I have the utmost faith in you! Besides, that's why Dr. Stein and Mr. Evans will be assisting you." He lifted his head a little. "Ah. Speak of the Devil."

"And he shall appear," said a moderately deep voice from behind the students. They all turned to the door through which they entered to be met by the sight of a medium height man who was closing the tall door behind him. A hand teased his white spikey locks into place and he approached up the short staircase at a saunter, clad in a gray denim jacket over a white shirt. "Sorry I'm late," he said, not sounding terribly sorry at all. The students made a path for him and he walked between them to his meister.

"It's good to see you, Soul. How was your trip?"

"Long and boring." He nodded at the scientist. "Morning, Doctor."

He nodded in return. "You look well."

"I do?" he spoke in a yawn. Every student's eye was drawn to his legendary shark-like teeth. He smacked his lips and rolled his head around to stretch his neck. "Good then, I guess. I kinda thought it was too damn early in the day to look well." The Death Scythe's crimson eyes turned to the group. "Is this them?"

Lord Death nodded. "This is them." He pointed to each of them, going from right to left. "Katy, Tim, Nikki, Christian, Rachele, Kian, Odette and William. Your new pupils."

He blinked lazily. "I'll…try to remember your names. No promises." He gave an unenthusiastic wave. "Call me Soul. No—Mr. Evans shit or, Mr. Death Scythe—that's just not cool."

William rolled his eyes. Odette, however, smiled. "It's nice to finally meet you." The rest of the students seemed either still in awe or their breath was baited with questions pertaining to his whereabouts for the past year and confirmation of facts about his famous battle with Kishin Asura. Their thoughts were interrupted by the headmaster.

"As I was saying, I have the utmost faith in your abilities, guys. I've been keeping tabs on your progress for a long time and I'm certain that you all have the souls necessary for this assignment."

Kian leaned over to Rachele and murmured. "Quite an interesting bowl of Trail Mix nonetheless." She giggled quietly.

"Actually, it's the precise bowl of Trail Mix I was looking for, Kian," Death declared. Kian ducked his head a little lower between his shoulders at having been caught making fun. The headmaster didn't seem fazed. "You each have very unique souls but I have seen how well they work with each other. Katy, your careful and critical nature can provide much needed guidance to your peers."

Katy allowed a tiny smile.

"Tim, your experience and analytical view of a situation are great aids to any mission. Nikki, your—er—stubbornness and hard-headedness help keep your friends on track."

Nikki's face was a perfect illustration of the uncertainty of whether she should be offended or flattered.

"Christian, your upbeat and laid back personality send confident and relaxing vibes to your partners."

He flashed a big cheesy grin.

"Rachele, your tender and caring nature is just the support your friends need. And Kian, your down-to-earth yet hasty nature is an adequate mix of the confidence your friends need, too."

The two looked at each other with a smile.

"Odette, your determination and your ability to remain calm in heated situations are great advantages for any team. And William…" Death's hollow eyes turned on him.

He shifted his weight and beckoned. "Come on, let me have it." He cocked his head with a sarcastic smirk.

The Reaper stared silently for a moment before his voice sounded again in a gentle string of words. "Your persevering strength. And your inherent ability to overcome the worst of circumstances."

William chewed on his cheek and looked elsewhere, receiving glances from his peers.

"This team is the only team I would trust to send to the East with the greatest certainty that it would succeed. You are _everything _each other needs." The headmaster took a seat on his stool again and picked up his cup of tea. "You just need to learn how to use your gifts for each other. That is why I have recruited Soul and Stein to help you. They both have firsthand experience in this matter. And I trust they will teach you everything you need to know before you ship off."

Odette sighed happily. "This is great news, sir. Thank you so much."

"Thank you!" The Reaper chimed. "I believe your sessions have been arranged after class every day. I hope you all will work hard! Remember to have faith in your own abilities as well as each other! You are dismissed."

The group of students began to disperse towards the door, Christian galloping down the stairs with a holler before Nikki jumped down on him for a piggy back ride through the halls. Their conversation blossomed into a noise as they went out. Though Tim was holding Katy's hand and they both walked in silence with each other.

"Odette and William. Just another moment, please," said Lord Death in an even tone. The duo stopped in their tracks and solemnly turned back to their headmaster. The Reaper looked to Soul and Stein. "Your private sessions will be with them."

Soul pointed at William. "Is this the guy?"

William blinked and looked around. "Am I the guy?"

Dr. Stein took the cigarette from his lips and spoke, smoke coming with each word. "He is the source of the black blood between them." His dull eyes panned to him.

Soul lifted his chin a little. "So, you're the one who—"

Death cleared his throat. "Soul. Now, now."

Odette spoke up. "Please, sir. There's no need to…tip-toe around the subject." She put her arm in William's. "Yes. He is the one who was almost made a Demon Scythe by Kishin Carvalho."

Soul's jaw jutted sideways and he looked to Dr. Stein. "Okay, well…" He looked back to the duo and shrugged. "Cool. So, we're gonna help you manage the influence of the black blood then, right?"

William kept his arm laced with Odette's. "… Is Miss Marie still going to be involved?"

Lord Death spoke up again. "Is that a problem?"

He shook his head. "No. Not at all. I prefer it."

"Then involved she will be. Okay with you, Stein?"

The doctor sighed another cloud of smoke. "We'll see."

"You can count on our best effort," Odette assured her superiors.  
"Thank you, Odette. You and William will meet with Stein and Soul three times a week at the time they indicate. I have faith in all of you. You all are dismissed."

Odette nodded gratefully before turning and walking with William to the door. She kept her voice low when she spoke to him. "Please behave yourself."

"You say that as if I don't normally behave myself," he said flatly.

She smiled a little. His sarcasm was usually the most assuring thing to receive. They walked on down the hall and she kept her arm in his.


	7. Eternally Grateful

**Eternally Grateful**

Katy glanced up from her computer when the door to their apartment opened. Christian slid in and threw his book bag down on the floor. "Honey, I'm home!"

"Awesome. Make supper."

"What?!"

"I'm trying to finish up homework. Please?"

The blonde's square chin swiveled from side to side for a moment with his green eyes narrowed. "All right. But this is happening." He started to undo his belt.

She watched. "No…"

"Yep!" He kicked off his big sneakers and dropped his pants to his ankles and stepped out of them and raised both arms above his head and walked by her into the kitchen in his gray boxer briefs. "Deal with it."

She sighed and kept her eyes on her computer screen as her weapon hummed to himself while removing contents from the fridge and freezer. "How was class?"

"Not horrible actually. I think I'll be good to go on the next exam. You?"

"Same. Just trying to finish this stuff up tonight before our session with Stein, Soul and Marie."

Christian put some water on the stove to boil. "Are you stoked?"

"I don't know what to be. I don't know what's going to happen." Katy put a finger in one of her spiral curls and twisted it tightly.

He set the oven to preheat. "Yeah, I wonder what kind of training you do for, uh…being besties with all your buds." He spun around and stepped towards her around the counter. "Maybe we'll all sit in a circle and sing and play Wonderwall on the guitar."

"It's an odd mix, isn't it? Death Scythe, Stein and sweet Miss Marie? I don't have any idea what to expect. Maybe it's some kind of… aura therapy or something."

"Or maybe Stein will just do brain surgery on all of us until we're the same people." He shrugged.

"Stop! Don't say that, that's—…a plausible theory." She looked up at him. "But he wouldn't want to make us the same people. That's why Lord Death chose us, because we're different people but we work well together."

"We haven't teamed up a whole lot though. I mean, the times we have teamed up went pretty well but don't you feel like Jolly Roger is placing a heck of a lot of faith in us for our experience?"

"Of course I do. I'm terrified," Katy said evenly as she went back to typing. "But I trust his judgment… And we have a lot of experienced people on our team. Tim and Nikki are lethal now. Rachele and Kian are nearly unstoppable when they resonate with Poltergeist. And Odette and William have never lost a fight since they've been partners. And you. You've nearly been a Death Scythe three times over."

"And you too. You're good." He kept his eyes on her.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"Wrong answer." He went to her and sat on the couch next to her. "Say, 'Yes, I am.'"

She gave a small smile but didn't look away from her computer screen. "Yes, I am."

"Like you mean it. Come on." He elbowed her.

Katy inhaled and spoke a little louder. "Yes, I am."

"That's right. You are." He smiled at her now but it didn't last long. "… Listen, I know you're scared. But look at it this way. When we're in the East, you will have the seven of us looking out for you all the time. Okay?" Christian put his hand on her shoulder and gave a friendly squeeze.

"I know. I just don't want to disappoint anyone on such a…prestigious opportunity."

"You won't. You're going to do your best and no one is going to be disappointed with your best."

She looked at him tenderly. "Thank you, Christian."

"No problem. Just relax! Chill out; revel in the moment of being the top pick! Okay?"

Katy nodded vacantly before blurting, "I'm sorry, I can't take you seriously until you put on some pants."

He sighed loudly and went to his room to get pajama bottoms.

"Thank you!" she called kindly to him.

Christian and Katy left their apartment and met their friends out in the hall to head to their first session. After walking a little ways, they stopped when Miss Marie met them coming from her own office. "Hi, guys!" she chimed sweetly with a quaint smile.

"Hello, Miss Marie. You're looking fabulous today," Christian charmed.

She giggled and blushed. "Why thank you! I'm thinking about cutting my hair," she ran her fingers through her blond locks if not a little self-consciously.

"Go for it! Though I like it the way it is," Rachele said with a smile.

"I'll think about it, thank you." Her sugary cheeks balled up under her eyes. She turned her head a little and donned a smile they hadn't seen yet. "Hello, William!"

He lifted his chin and his voice came out as if he hadn't quite prepared the breath for it. "Hey."

She approached in her high-heeled boots with open arms. "How are you, honey?"

Kian's eyes went wide as he watched Miss Marie give him a soft hug that William awkwardly returned with one arm. "Fine," he replied, "How are you?"

"Oh, you know. Just getting along!" she sang in a jolly tone, stepping back to look up at him. "I'm so excited to be working with all of you! Shall we go on together?"

"Sure," Nikki followed with her friends, though exchanging looks with all of them but William.

Christian leaned towards Odette as they walked and talked quietly, "So, how long has Big Willy had a thing for Dr. Stein's woman?"

Odette took a breath and whispered, "It's—not that kind of thing."

"I wouldn't be so sure."

"Trust me. It's not that kind of thing. He just has a lot of respect for her." The redhead made sure that no one else was able to hear them before she lowered her voice and elaborated. "When Lord Death came back after…essentially _kidnapping_ William from Kishin Carvalho…she did a lot for him. A lot that nobody else would have done for him at the time and…he's eternally grateful." Odette looked ahead at the back of her partner's head. "And so am I."

_ The big metal door's lock clanged loudly, echoing off the gray brick walls around him. William winced, a hand tightly molded to his skull. The door swung open with a piercing squeak of the hinges and he clutched the pillow tight under his chin. Trembling, he forced an eye open through his blinding migraine to see two shadows in the doorway. One of them came forward and he found it to be a woman carrying a tray of food and a bottle of water. The other shadow remained in the doorway. The woman sat on the edge of his bed. The light filtering in from the hallway shone on her wavy blond hair. A sweet feminine voice spoke softly. "It's meatloaf from the cafeteria. Mashed potatoes and green beans. I can bring you some tea if you like."_

_ He closed his eyes and pressed his nose into the pillow to block out the smell and shook his head. "Sorry, no thanks," he rattled out over his terrible nausea._

_ "What's the matter, are you sick?" The woman leaned forward and he felt her hand touch his brow. He winced at the contact, his skin aching and beaded with sweat._

_ "Marie—" warned the shadow from the doorway._

_ "You're freezing." She cupped his face in her hands. William opened his eyes to her. Her features were just as delicate as her touch. One caramel brown eye looked back at him in concern, a black eye patch with a yellow zigzag line covering where the other one should be. She blinked and her mouth angled down in a small frown. "What are you coming off of," she asked as gently and quietly as he'd ever heard anyone speak._

_ He continued to tremble under her touch, struggling to keep sight of her through the vehement pounding of his skull. "A—little b-bit of everything,"_

_ She stared sympathetically for a moment before turning to the man in the door. "Could we set him up with an intravenous?"_

_ The light glinted from his glasses back at them. "… Marie."_

_ "Look at him, Franken. How could he be faking it," she pleaded._

_ He stood as a silhouette in the doorway for another moment before sighing quietly and walking down the hall._

_ She looked back at William. "I'm going to bring you some tea to settle your stomach. I'll be right back." She squeezed his knee before going out the door and closing it behind her with another heavy clang. He waited in the dark until the door came open again and she returned with a cup of tea. "Try to drink this when you can. It will make the nausea bearable. Okay?"_

_ He mustered a nod. "Thank you."_

_ "If your stomach does start to settle, you should try to eat too."_

_ He nodded again and closed his eyes. Next he heard a rolling cart of some kind enter. He opened his eyes and Marie scooted away to let Dr. Stein sit next to him. The scientist picked up his arm. He didn't have to feel for a vein; the trace marks were all he needed to guide a needle. William watched him tape the needle to the bend of his arm after it had already been inserted then put another needle into the tube and press down on a syringe. He flinched a little. "What's that,"_

_ "Mild sedative," he replied around the cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth. "The withdrawals have to run their course on your body. But you don't have to be awake for all of it."_

_ He blinked. "…Thanks."_

_ Dr. Stein flicked the dripper next to the bag of fluids to make sure it was going before walking away and out the door._

_ Marie moved closer again. "Can I get you anything else?"_

_ William maintained a bewildered look and dumbly shook his head._

_ She patted his leg and went for the door. "Drink some tea and get some sleep. You'll feel better when you wake up."_

_ "W-why are you doing this?" he crackled._

_ With her hand on the door she looked back at him with a little but pleasant smile. "Because it's the right thing to do. And everyone deserves a second chance."_

_ He could do nothing but stare in confusion, still lightly shaking on his cot._

_ "Goodnight, William." Marie stepped out and the door closed with another loud clang followed by an equally loud shift of the lock._

_ He looked after her and he was shrouded in darkness again. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall and let the sedative go to work._


	8. First Chord

**First Chord**

The group of students walked out of the school with Marie as their escort towards the trees on campus. Behind the castle they could see a fire peeking through the tree line, dancing between the trunks of trees as if they were window blinds on a sunny day. Upon arrival they found the source of the fire to be from a fat candle that was half as tall as each of them with a wick as thick as rope. It sat on the leaves with a hardened puddle of its wax like a halo around it, coating the leaves under it as if it were a dense sugary glaze. Christian was—of course—the first to point out their campfire.

"That's a big ass candle."

"The ones on the castle are bigger," Katy mentioned. "A lot bigger."

"Yeah, but I can touch this one," He crept forward but his partner caught the hood of his sweater and pulled him back.

Marie parted from the group and went to stand next to Dr. Stein who leaned away from a tree and put his hands in the pockets of his lab coat. Several noticed that he didn't have a cigarette this time. "All right, let's get started then. Soul."

The Death Scythe who was sitting at the trunk of another tree took an ear bud out of his ear and looked up. "Yo."

"Proceed."

Soul stood up and brushed his clothes off after having stuffed his music player in the pocket of his short-sleeved yellow hoodie that he was wearing over a black long sleeved shirt. "All right. So," he clapped his hands once and rubbed them together. "You guys are all gonna resonate at the same time until you can feel each other."

Rachele raised her hand.

Soul's dull red eyes fell on her. "Are you kidding me with that."

"Sorry," she softly drew her hand back to her side, "Um, what does that mean? 'Feel each other?'"

"Like, ya know," he waved his hand about, "How you kinda share thoughts and intentions and whatnot. Like you do with your meister or your weapon. But you're gonna be able to do that with all these guys. So… Which of you have the closest bonds? Good friends or…cousins or something?"

"Ooh!" Nikki jumped forward with Christian. "We're twins!"

Soul's brow furrowed. "… You don't look anything like each other."

"Fraternal twins," Christian said as if he'd had to say it before.

"Not all twins are identical, you know." Nikki crossed her arms.

"Okay, whatever. Weapons, meisters?"

"We're weapons. They're our meisters." Christian gestured to Tim and Katy.

Soul looked to them. "Are you twins, too?"

"N-no, he's my boyfriend." Katy said with a polite smile.

"I'm her boyfriend," Tim confirmed.

"Cool. Okay. Do your thing. But branch out, ya know? Like… open your minds further try to stretch that horizon, that… void where you meet your partner. Listen for your sibling or significant other, whichever." Soul stepped back with the others. "Listen for them."

Katy gave Tim a look of dissatisfaction with their instructions but complied all the same. She took Christian's hand and he transformed into his naginata form as his sister morphed to her shuriken form in Tim's grasp. The meisters closed their eyes.

_Christian's direct line of sight bore a microphone on its stand illuminated by a single bright spotlight on a shiny stage. He walked forward in the white space toward the yellowish spot where the microphone was centered, tugging on his black tuxedo a little and stretching his neck comfortably over his red bowtie. He carefully closed his fingers of one hand around the handle of the microphone and the fingers of the other hand around its stand. He closed his eyes and softly breathed in and out before barely parting his lips and glossing his microphone with a smooth hum in his baritone octave._

A soft pulse shocked Katy's palms and her breath hitched for a moment though she kept her eyes closed. She breathed in Christian's soothing singular note. A cool breeze came up from her feet and tossed her hair and she kept her grip on the shaft of the naginata secure but not tight.

_Nikki's eyes were set on the microphone that solely decorated the ivory stage. She didn't blink as she walked forward, her heels clicking and echoing into the white emptiness around her. The tail of her tapered black evening gown dragged silently behind her. Taking the microphone in her hands, she swallowed past her thin red choker to wet her throat. She inhaled and hummed an angelic soprano note._

An identical breeze teased the legs of Tim's pants as he listened to Nikki's voice in his head. The instructors all watched on with narrowed eyes though the rest of the students watched in awe and interest as the candlelight flicked on and off their faces. Soon enough, Katy found very faint harmony in her mind. Christian's low note was crisp and clean but now she began to hear a muffled sound like that of a bell. It began to sound clearer and clearer until it started to mesh fluidly with her partner's voice. It was undoubtedly Nikki.

She started to smile and Tim's eyebrows twitched momentarily. He spoke quietly. "I hear…"

"Me too," Katy whispered back. Not only could she feel Nikki's mind, but Tim's as well. They were both like notes in the margin of a book being read—present but nothing more than an accent of connection.

Marie giggled happily. Soul clapped his hands. "All right, good, good. Stop for a second. So, you found each other, right?"

Tim and Katy opened their eyes. She nodded fast. "Yeah!"

Christian's voice shouted over her as his face appeared in the narrow blade. "Oh my God, that was so cool! Nikki!"

Her voice shouted back, her blue eyes almost like jewels on the silver part of the circular blade. "I know! You sound so good!"

"You sound good!"

"Cool, let's keep it rolling." Soul motioned to the other four students. "Who's next?"

Katy sharply pointed to her ginger. "Rachele and Kian!"

Rachele squeaked and trotted to the other side of the big candle and stood beside her best friend. She stuck her hand out for Kian. He put his gloved hand in hers before turning into his scythe form. Once again, the meisters closed their eyes and everything was quiet again.

_Kian took his seat on the white stool and leaned the cello between each thigh. He waited a moment with the bow in hand while his fingers became reacquainted with the strings. He lighted the bow on the neck and paused. It wasn't the usual white silence. There was something out there in the void. He wasn't alone. The bow glided across the strings, a sound that could be the soundtrack of a lunar eclipse blossoming into the whiteness._

Rachele's auburn locks tickled her shoulders with the breeze that rose around her. Tim and Katy had already reached their resonance and she could feel them. With the firelight shining from her glasses she started to smile at having connected with the other four. "Wow," she said breathlessly.

"Keep it up." Soul looked at Odette and William and nodded them over. "Jump in."

Her bright eyes turned on him before she took his hand. Immediately upon contact he took his zanbato form. Odette effortlessly held him up and stood close to the other three meisters and their weapons around the big candle. She closed her eyes like her friends. Stein and Soul didn't blink now. She breathed an almost inaudible word of encouragement to her partner as her fingers molded to his handle.

_William opened his eyes to find himself surrounded by black. He glanced down at himself, seeing two shiny black dress shoes at the bottom of his white tuxedo ensemble with a red vest. Before him sat a black grand piano with a red velvet bench. Next to it was a familiar inky black shadow figure. Wisps of dark fog that billowed out from the bottom of a feminine dress shape rose up around it. The long black hair dripped its darkness onto the floor that burst into tiny little vapors that added to the fog. A long slender arm parted from the waist and rose beside it. A spidery black finger pointed to the piano. _

_ He released a steady breath through his nose. His shoes barely scuffed the shiny black floor on his way to the bench. Minding the tails of his tuxedo, he sat in the middle. Each ivory key glistened up at him and his fingers were practically drawn into place over the starting position. He turned his chin a little and looked out of the corner of his eye. The figure's head was awkwardly cocked, its featureless face obviously turned to him, waiting. William's eyes didn't change. He looked back at the keys before him and his fingers pressed down with a strong chord._

Odette inhaled sharply at the shock in her fingers that traveled throughout the rest of her body. In the circle of students, the brilliant harmony of a baritone voice, a soprano voice, a cello and a piano vibrated the space between them across the big candle. The unison sound radiated from their souls with such clarity that Marie closed her eyes and held her breath. Soon their resonance dissipated and everyone opened their eyes. The students looked between each other, partially stunned.

Soul nodded with his arms crossed. "Very cool."

"That was just wonderful, guys! I could hear it, it was beautiful! And it was just one chord! You all work so well together!" Marie gushed.

"And that is how it's done." Dr. Stein allowed a smirk. "Good job. But you still have a long way to go. Now that you've learned how to connect to each other, you'll need to keep practicing until it's easier. Then you'll start to communicate with each other with your souls and minds. That's what will make you unstoppable."

"Woo!" Christian jumped back onto the ground in his human form. "I'm pumped! Let's do more! Come on, I'm ready!"

"You've been out here longer than you think." Soul looked at his phone. "It's been about two hours."

"Two hours?" Rachele said incredulously.

Odette turned to her. "We were waiting a while for Tim and Katy. I waited on you a while, too."

"Get some rest. You have class in the morning." Dr. Stein scuffed his shoe in the leaves.

Soul gave a sharp-toothed yawn. "Yeah, I'm beat."

"Thank you for the lesson," Katy said politely as she and her friends began to disperse back to the castle. Their chatter was much more excited this time than it was when they were given their assignment.

While William walked with Odette, he turned when Soul called his name.

"Good job and uh… I guess Stein wants us to meet tomorrow after the session."

He nodded. "All right. We'll be there."

"Night." Soul walked on ahead of them with his hands in the pocket of his hoodie.

William looked to his partner. "You okay?"

Odette smiled at him. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

He caught Dr. Stein's eyes on him over his shoulder. "Just checking."


	9. Flaws (Part 1)

**Flaws (Part 1)**

_(FanFiction seems to be having some issues with the Manage Stories tab... I hope you guys can find this!)_

Two days after their first resonance session with their instructors, William and Odette stepped inside Dr. Stein's office for their first private session. Odette was not entirely without her qualms about a "private session" with Dr. Stein and William would not be being honest with himself if he claimed he wasn't concerned too. But Soul and Marie were there. Surely it couldn't be all that bad.

The doctor lighted a small candle on a stand and set it in the floor between two cushions. "Go ahead and sit down."

Odette didn't question him but carefully took her seat on one side of the candle and William on the other. Marie smiled at them sweetly. William even tried a lopsided smile back at her.

"Okay. We're going to start off pretty simple." Dr. Stein plopped down in his rolling chair near Marie and comfortably propped his ankle over his knee. "I want you both to tell each other what their flaws are."

William looked at him. "You're serious?"

"Oh yeah," Soul answered for the teacher, "As a heart attack. Go on. You start, do a back and forth, whatever you want," the Death Scythe chuckled, leaning back in another chair with his hands behind his head and apparently amused to be the spectator this time.

He turned back to his partner with a sigh.

"It's okay. Go ahead." Odette settled further into her cushion with an interested grin. Her pale fingers laced in front of her.

William looked around the room, snarling a little at the things he found floating in jars. What a wonderful location for a partner therapy session. He brushed his fingers through his hair. "You, uh… you have a tendency to be stubborn… nit-picky. Not anal, just… sometimes annoyingly particular. Your… need to know everything is a little aggravating. You can't just go with the flow. And I know you're that way because you like to feel in control of things. But you don't have to know everything to be in control. Sometimes you overkill on it. I know you mean well." He shrugged.

Odette nodded thoughtfully, looking down for a moment as she considered everything he said.

"And when you get mad you look like a pig. Because your nose does this thing," he pulled the tip of his nose up with his finger. "I mean, it does that anyway, but it _really _does it when you're mad because you wrinkle it up like this and stuff." William kept making his pig face.

Odette started to laugh and blush furiously. "I can't help that!"

"I know. That's not a flaw; I actually like that. I just wanted to say that." He shrugged again.

Marie giggled and covered her mouth. Odette tossed her hair. "I guess I should be thankful for that then." She cleared her throat and looked in his eyes. "You are also stubborn—in different ways in which I am stubborn. Equally irritating though I imagine."

William pursed his lips and nodded in agreement. Dr. Stein huffed into his cigarette.

Odette's smile faded and her eyes turned more serious. "You rely on alcohol more than you rely on me. And that bothers me."

His eyes turned serious too.

"I don't like how… when you are upset, talking to me comes second to getting drunk or… other nocturnal escapades."

William blinked. "… I quit bringing them back to the room."

"Okay," Dr. Stein's thumb and finger rubbed the bridge of his nose between his eyes under his glasses. Marie's mouth made a tiny 'o' as she softly put her hands over her ears. Soul's shoulders shook with a low chuckle.

"Which I appreciate. But—you still look for comfort in the wrong places…" She narrowed her eyes a little more, staring more deeply into his. "No. Not comfort. Distraction. You don't… you don't look for consoling, you don't look for ways to deal with your pain, you just look for ways to forget about it for a while. To suppress it."

William's eyes drifted down to the candle's flame and his typical heavy-setting brow came back.

"I just wish you would try not to run away from what hurts you and let me help you handle it."

He kept his eyes down and his voice low. "You pry so much to make me talk to you."

"Even if I didn't pry, you still wouldn't."

"What if talking isn't how I want to deal with stuff."

"You haven't tried."

Now he said nothing and only kept looking down at the candle.

"And when I'm the one making the effort you do that." She nodded at him. "You clam up like we never even started a conversation in the first place."

Dr. Stein shifted in his chair. "Now we're getting somewhere." He stood and took his cigarette from his mouth. "William, you need to find a way to start dealing with your issues. And Odette needs to be…" He searched the air for the word.

"Patient. And understanding. And not overly-assertive." Marie said carefully.

"Can we not do this—here, like— …" William uncomfortably rubbed the back of his neck and let his hand fall back to his lap with a slap and looked back at Odette. "Why do we need them here to talk to each other, huh?"

"Because we do! Apparently. This stuff is out in the open now, isn't it?"

"I'm not—talking about this shit in front of them." He stood up from the cushion and went towards the door.

Odette bolted up. "Do you promise that if it's just me and you that you will talk to me?"

"Yes. Fine. Yes. I'm not gonna be his—f*cking experiment." William gestured at Dr. Stein who only lazily puffed on his cigarette.

"Fine." Odette brushed past him and opened the door and left. Her partner scoffed and went after her, slamming the door shut behind him.

The three instructors were left in silence. The doctor talked out of one side of his mouth. "That was pretty good."

Marie's eye went dull as she looked to him.

Soul sighed with his hands in his pockets. "I miss Maka."

Odette entered their apartment and stood in his way. "That was embarrassing. You promised me you would behave."

"I'm not good at behaving when no one else is, that's not my thing." He shrugged.

"You were the only one being an asshole."

"I'm the only asshole? What about Frank, huh? He _told _us to do that so he could watch us get pissed off at each other. Everything's an experiment to him, everyone's a freaking specimen. This is the shit he gets off on and I'm not giving him that—that smug prick—"

"Oh my God, William, give it a rest. Yes, he's weird, we are all perfectly aware of that, but he is not out to get you."

"I never said he was out to get me, I said he was a smug prick," he said simply, wrinkling his brow as if he were confused as to how she had become confused.

"A smug prick who saved your life." She jabbed a finger at him.

"Because Grim told him to. And he wouldn't get any from Marie if he didn't." He walked around her to the kitchen.

She followed him. "He cares about you."

"He _hates _me," William dug around in the fridge.

"You just don't know him and he doesn't know you. Have you ever thought that maybe the reason why you seem to butt heads with him so much is that you have a lot in common?"

He stopped in his tracks and turned to her with a less than gentle expression. "Is that supposed to be funny."

"Think about it, William. Where you came from, what you've been through. The things you've seen… The things you've done."

He went on to close the fridge and take a bottle of rum out of the cabinet instead. "He's not interested in making a connection, Odette, and neither am I."

"Fine. You don't have to talk to him. But talk to me." She moved closer and leaned one hip against the counter with her arms crossed. "You said you would when we were alone. We're alone now." Her blue eyes became infiltrating rather than open and receiving.

He pursed his lips again, grasping the neck of the amber bottle in his fist. "You know, I can't think of a single thing to talk about."

"William!" she snapped.

"There's not anything bothering me right now that you don't know about so—rain check." He slipped past her, taking the bottle with him.

She chased after him. "Don't you _dare!" _Odette nearly hit her nose on the door to his room when he closed it. "DAMN it!" She kicked the door hard before growling and storming off to her own room and slamming her own door with a mighty crash.


	10. Flaws (Part 2)

**Flaws (Part 2)**

Both Katy and Christian flinched when they heard a door slam and Odette's angrily raised voice. Katy blinked. "Uh oh. William must have puked in the bathroom floor and didn't clean it up again."

"I honestly don't know how she stands him sometimes." Christian flipped through the TV channels some more. "… You don't think she likes him, do you?"

"You mean actual like?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know. I haven't really talked to her about it. I know she cares about him a lot but I don't know if she's, like, attracted to him." Katy chewed on the end of her pencil as she thought about what she might want to draw.

"Because that would suck if she did like him." Christian looked at her.

"Christian, have you even tried approaching her with actual romantic intent and not just flirting?" She said without looking up.

"There's never a time for it! We're never alone with each other, there's always other stuff going on." He absent-mindedly kept changing channels.

"It also might benefit you to stop giving all the other girls attention too. Just a suggestion."

"I like to keep my options open," he said defensively.

Now she looked up with wide eyes. "And that's why I would never date you," she said harshly. "Look, if you like her you need to get your priorities in order. And keep in mind that you can't mark William off the list of your competition just because she may not be attracted to him. He's twenty-six years old. He's got that older guy appeal. Maturity, all that stuff that girls like Odette _are _attracted to."

Christian met her eyes. "William, mature? Last month he got drunk and pissed on his homework. Literally _pissed _on his homework! And turned it in!"

"He's her weapon, he resonates with her, he knows her mind, he takes care of her, she takes care of him. Yeah, he has his quirks, but when you get down to the important stuff, William's not a bad guy. Last month he also cooked for her and cleaned the whole time she had the flu. He did all of the errand-running—he picked up _tampons_ for her, Christian." She said with emphasis. "I don't think you understand how much you are in the hole compared to him even if he does pee on his homework on occasion."

"I'm—ten times the guy he is," he mumbled, staring at the TV screen again.

"Okay. Go get me tampons," she said flatly.

"… You—don't have the flu."

Katy made a small noise of victory as she put her pencil to her sketchbook.

"I have my priorities in order, okay? I play it all smooth-like and I'll ask her to check my soul for me, ya know? That's kind of romantic. I'm letting her see the deepest parts of me. All me, just—raw Christian James and she's got full access to the truth about me. That's deep."

"Mhm." Her tone had already conveyed her loss of interest.

"And it's an excuse to be alone with her. I'll just pop in every once in a while and be like, 'Hey, can you check me out?'" He bounced his eyebrows. "Of course, last time I asked her I really did want to know what she saw. Probably good if I don't look suspicious…"

Katy looked up from her drawing. "You wanted her to check your soul?" she asked quietly.

He glanced at her. "Yeah."

She blinked. "Why?"

Christian shrugged. "Ya know. Just… a general update."

Katy didn't take her eyes off him. "… An update?"

"Yeah. I mean… You and I have been kind of off and I just wanted to make sure that… I wasn't causing any issues." He began to nervously tap his finger on the arm of the couch and kept watching TV, though not paying attention. Oh God, what had he done?

She stared. "… We've been off?" she said with a hint of argument. "This is news to me. In what ways have we been off?"

"Kind of off, not completely off."

"So, when Odette checked your soul… she found that you're not the reason why we're off. I'm the reason?" The argument in her tone was replaced with a bit of hurt.

"Katy, it's okay. It's no big deal. We're okay, we're resonating fine."

"But it's not okay, not if you feel like we're off, I have to do something about it."

"You're making this a big deal and it's not. Please, just relax. Don't worry about it."

She set down her sketchbook. "Christian, if you feel like something's wrong we need to talk about it."

"No, we don't need to talk about it, it's _okay. _I shouldn't have said anything because it really doesn't matter."

She sighed and looked down. Now it was quiet for a while. But she didn't even keep drawing. She only stared sadly at the outline of something she had started to draw.

Christian tried to keep watching television, but her sad eyes were screaming at him even though they weren't on him. She would continue this. For _days. _"Okay, you know what's wrong? This."

A little taken aback, she lifted her eyes to him again. "… This?"

"Yes, this. This moping thing that you do, this—sitting in self-doubt and self-pity and worrying-about-nothing thing that you always do. That's what's wrong, Katy." He tried to keep his voice gentle but it didn't matter when his words were so sharp. He could feel his dormant frustration start to crawl up through his ribs and there was no stopping it now.

She flinched a little but forced her voice out to sound harder than his. "I'm sorry. I can't help that I get discouraged when you announce that you aren't clicking with me as well anymore. Sue me."

"It's not just this situation, Katy! It's everything. Every single little thing that happens—you let it get you down and make you feel crappy and it's really hard for me to keep being optimistic enough for the both of us when you're so depressed about the universe all the time." So much for keeping his voice gentle.

Her face transformed to a mix of horror and fury. But she didn't move yet. "Okay, you want me to apologize for being depressed? You think I _like_ being depressed?"

He nodded with wide eyes. "Yeah! I really think you do sometimes."

Katy's eyes turned wild and she stood up and threw her things on the floor. "Oh, thanks! Thanks a lot, Christian! Real nice. You're my partner! You're my support! Now you're just going to blame me for being sad? You're supposed to be _helping _me and building me up!"

Christian stood up and turned to her too. "That's exactly what I do, Katy! I do build you up! I spend nearly every breath building you up! But you happen to have a knack to just Godzilla right on through that bitch when I'm done. Every time. I'll spend an hour telling you how great you are and how awesome you are and how you have nothing to worry about and then when it's over you're like—" He started roaring and stomping around and pretending to be a giant dinosaur as he smacked the TV's remote into the floor. "That's what you do. To _yourself. _Every day."

Katy watched him with her eyes watering and her chest heaving.

"So, forgive me if I'm a little impatient right now. But it really kind of sucks when I'm the only one who's trying to fix you."

She nodded, tears close to escaping their barrier. "So, I need to be fixed. All right." She walked around him towards her room.

"You need to fix yourself, Katy. You need to make an effort to help yourself!"

She went in and closed the door.

Christian sighed and plopped down on the couch again. He ran his fingers through his short blond locks and sat in silence. Silence only until he could hear her muffled sobs. It was then that he had to go to his own room and shut the door. But no matter how softly she cried, he couldn't stop hearing her.

The next evening, the group reported back to the edge of the trees behind the castle for their next session. Though it was a little quieter today, they all went on about their regular process of resonating and experimenting with sending small thoughts and feelings to each other in their link. However, there wasn't perfect harmony anymore. Something was wrong. And it was easy to tell. In that white void where they all converged, there was the cello and Nikki's voice. But the piano and the baritone vocal seemed to be flat. Or sharp. Or off time. Or something.

Odette sighed and dropped out of the resonance, the light blue light that rose up with the wind from her feet fading quickly. Soon after, the other meisters opened their eyes and looked around at each other.

Dr. Stein put his hands out beside him. "What?"

"Something's not right," Nikki announced without hesitation in her weapon form.

"It's me," Katy retorted nervously with her eyes downcast.

"No, it's me," said Odette. "I'm sorry, I'm just—"

"Wait, wait, wait," Soul interrupted. He pointed at Odette. "I know what's wrong with you, but what the hell is wrong with you?" He looked at Katy.

She spoke in a shaking breath. "I have to fix myself. I'm sorry." She gently set down the naginata in her hands and walked away from them all, further into the trees. Soul furrowed his brow and looked to Stein and Marie. Christian called her name and changed back into his human form with a white flash.

Tim immediately looked to him and spoke gravely. "What did you do."

"We—we had a bit of a spat last night." Christian said with guilt laced through his words. Rachele silently let Kian transform back to his human form as she jogged after her best friend into the trees.

Tim let Nikki do the same as he stepped closer to Christian. "What did you say to her?"

"I—I said that she needed to try to be more optimistic and that she needed to try harder not to tear herself down. Just—… not that nicely…"

He looked to where Rachele was walking with his girlfriend then back up at the taller boy. "You have to be careful, man. She lets negative criticism fester."

"Yeah, I know! That's what I was trying to say!"

"Well, apparently you didn't say it the way you should have." He started off into the trees as well.

"I'm sorry! I know, I'll—I'll talk to her, okay? I'll make it right."

"Let me do the preliminary clean-up. You stay away. I'll let you know." Tim gave him a glance over his shoulder.

Christian sighed and put his hands in his hair. "Crap."

Nikki patted his back. "Good job."

Dr. Stein looked between the ones left standing either in guilt or awkwardness and threw his cigarette on the leaves and stepped on it to put it out. "Well. I guess this session is over."

Kian pulled nervously at his red scarf. "What do we do now?"

The scientist put his hands in the pockets of his coat and started crunching his way back to the castle. Soul followed him and replied, "Try not to fall apart while everyone else gets their shit together."

Marie stepped forward. "I'm so sorry, guys. If there's anything I can do for any of you, please don't hesitate to ask." She gave soft looks to each of them before solemnly following Soul and Stein back to school.

Odette sighed through her nose and looked beside her to her partner. He looked back at her, his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. She rubbed her lips together before speaking quietly. "I've got some things to apologize for. Do you want to go get some coffee?"

He blinked. "Me too… And yes."

She put carefully put her hand in the bend of his arm and they began their walk to his motorcycle in front of the school.


	11. Amends (Part 1)

**Amends (Part 1)**

Odette gently blew ripples into her cup of coffee to cool it off. She took a careful breath and looked to his eyes across from her in the booth. "You were right about me. I do like to know things in order to be in control. And I understand how I can get pushy and nosy. I'm really sorry about that. Especially towards you. I can be demanding and aggressive when I want to fix something instead of just… going with the flow like you said. I'm gonna try to be better about that. I'll try really hard."

William stared into his own cup of coffee and nodded. "Thank you. I forgive you."

"So, from now on… if I ask you if you want to talk and you don't want to, I'll back off. Okay?"

He opened his mouth in hesitation before replying. "I should apologize for being so difficult." William looked at her. "This is different for me."

She nodded understandingly.

"… It's not that I don't trust you or anything. I do. It's just that I don't want you to think any less of me than you already do." He said evenly and with no actual emotion in his tone as he swiped his fingers through his dark shaggy hair.

When she blinked it was almost a flinch. "William, I never think anything negative about you. Never. And I never will." Odette watched him sip from his cup with a grateful nod. She knew he wasn't convinced. She had to let him know somehow. Her blue eyes grew sad as she watched him look out the window with tired eyes. She used to think it was just his drinking habit, but she learned a long time ago that his eyes always looked that way. There had to be a way to help him. Maybe she just wasn't going about it the right way. Perhaps it was time to get down on his level. He never liked making a big deal out of anything. Maybe she should stop trying to make it a big deal, too. "… I have an idea. Let's play a game."

He turned back to her. "A game?"

"Yeah. Every day, I tell you something personal about myself that you don't know. And you tell me something about you that I don't know."

William blinked. "… You're serious?"

"Yes. I mean… if that's all right with you." She sat back in her seat a little.

He sighed deeply and looked around the coffee shop. "… Every day is a lot."

"Every week then. And that gives you a while to recover between turns." She said with a smile.

His eyes turned on her again but this time with a glint of something more that she didn't see often. Something that kind of looked like she had won points for understanding something new. He nodded slowly. "Okay."

"I'll go first? Are you ready?"

"Sure." He took another drink of coffee.

Odette inflated her chest and tapped her fingers on the table. "All right, let's see… Um… I left home when I was sixteen years old. Came straight here to be a weapon meister."

He blinked. "Why did you leave home?"

"Next week." She winked. "Now you."

He sighed silently. "There's nothing good."

"It's okay." She reached across the table and patted his hand.

For a long moment he was quiet. Odette watched his eyes and she could almost see him consider a moment to share but then toss it away and jump to the next one. She didn't want to stare for that long so she took another drink of coffee so as to not make him nervous. And then he spoke quietly. "I used to hurt myself but I don't anymore."

An icy shock pierced her heart as she met his eyes again.

He went on casually. "Not because I was upset or anything. Just… Well, I honestly don't really know why I did it. I was stupid. Sometimes I would do it to see how much I could take. Like burning and cutting and stuff? To see how far I could go before it was too much. The rest of the time I didn't know I was doing it. Like I would just come to and it would already be done. Couldn't remember how it happened." William shrugged.

Odette held in a shaky breath. She prepared herself with a swallow before responding. "Was that because of the madness? The black blood?"

"I don't know. I guess so." He didn't sound regretful or bothered at all. He sounded like he sounded when he ordered his coffee. Completely nonchalant.

She touched his hand again. "But you don't do it anymore you said. Maybe it was the black blood and you've gotten in control of it now."

He nodded. "You're probably right."

Odette smiled softly. "Thank you."

He lowered his voice even further. "Thanks for not judging me."

She leaned forward. "Never." Her lips gave his cheek a quick peck. "Come on. Let's go back to our dorm and watch a movie." Odette slid out of the booth with her coffee. William followed her out the door.

_(Page Break)_

The next day, the group headed to their usual spot for their training session. It was quiet again as they walked. Nikki kept glancing at Odette and William and Katy and Christian as if she could try and predict how today's session would go. When Tim noticed, he subtly scolded to her to make her stop. Katy's eyes were still low and Christian walked a few paces behind her instead of ahead of her as he usually did. His hands were in his pockets and maybe his eyes were lower than hers. Dr. Stein and Miss Marie met them in the outer commons area in front of the school as they exited the building. The giant candles hanging above them began to cast an orange glow on the face of the castle and the large stoop on which they stood. A voice cut through the quiet, a voice they all recognized to be Jason Calkin's. "Well, look who it is!" A unison cringe appeared on the student's faces as they all turned to face him and his meister, Storm as well as a girl with full brown hair and another with straight jet black hair that curtained a narrow face. Calkin stepped forward again. "On to your secret lessons, huh?" He smiled a crooked smile with equally crooked teeth.

"They're not secret, everyone knows what we're doing," Rachele said flatly.

"What did Lord Death say to you?" Storm's frosty green eyes flicked between them for a moment. "Hey, William."

"Hey," he said back.

Odette looked up at her partner with a bit of a snarl. "How…?"

He lowered his voice. "I… might have…"

She blinked and looked ahead again. "Oh." Odette cleared her throat. "Not really your business, Storm."

"Don't be a bitch. You said everyone knows what you're doing, I just was curious as to why you're doing it."

Nikki stepped forward. "You mean why are we doing it instead of you? Because Lord Death picked us and not you, that's why."

The other girl with straight black hair spoke up, putting her thin arm by her side that bore a spiraling rose tattoo. "Why the hell would he pick you instead of anyone?" She looked to Odette's partner. "William."

He nodded at her. "Cicero."

Odette turned to him with more disgust in her features this time. "You are utterly despicable."

"We've—established this, yes. I know." He closed his eyes in a brief pang of guilt and shame. But only briefly.

"You want to start something?" Nikki stormed forward. Tim caught her arm and held her back.

Her brother now spoke up. "Lord Death has faith in us, you want to know why? Let's go." He pulled his hands out of his pockets.

Alex huffed. "Are you joking? We've finished all our missions for this year already. You want to fight?"

"Hell yeah, I do."

"We have a lesson to get to," Katy said behind him.

"We're not in any hurry. You officiate a duel for us, Doc?" He tossed his head over his shoulder.

Dr. Stein repositioned his glasses on the bridge of his nose and gave a thumbs-up. Odette still carried on a quiet hissing conversation with her weapon. "Alex too?"

"Of course not," he said with a grimace as if he were offended that she would think such a thing. "… She's a lesbian."

Odette blinked and looked forward again. "Oh."

"All right then, it's settled." Christian popped his neck.

Katy snatched his arm. "It is _not _settled! I don't want to fight them! I want to go to our lesson and go home!"

The blonde turned to her and she flinched when he put his hands on either side of her face and looked down into her hazel eyes. "You just need a confidence boost. That's all. You're gonna win this fight and you'll be back in the saddle, believe me."

She gripped his wrists. "Christian—"

"Do you trust me?"

Katy sighed shakily, glancing at everyone around her before meeting his eyes again. "For some reason that escapes me. Yes, I do."

"And I trust _you." _His hands barely gave her head a little shake of assurance. "Let's kick their asses."

She licked her lips nervously before breathing her reluctant response that wasn't nearly loud enough to be heard. "Okay."

Odette whispered, leaning closer to William. "So… Alex and Cicero…"

"Mhm," he crooned as his eyes glazed over in a pleasant daydream with a devious smirk.

Christian took Katy's hand and his body gathered itself in a white light to transform into his elegant naginata form. The meister faced Alex and Cicero with her mouth closed and her heart pounding horribly in her ears. The rest of the students backed away into a loose circle, giving the opponents a wide berth.

Alex stepped forward in a pair of old, worn sneakers and held her hand out. Cicero took her hand and became engulfed in light as her body narrowed and elongated. When the light broke away, she now rested in Alex's grip as a twelve foot long braided black and white whip. The end rested on the ground in front of Alex's feet with a collection of loose strands that averaged a length of about two feet each. The material of Cicero's form was not leather as Katy was expecting but rather a pliable metal and each curve of a braid reflected a glint of orange from the great candles above them. Alex flicked her wrist with minimal effort and the whip recreated the motion and magnified it. The tassels on the end snapped and the entire length of the weapon now sparked with blue pops of electricity up to where it stopped at the handle.

Kian and Rachele both made almost identical faces of worry, biting down on their lips or cheeks hard. Tim sighed calmly and nodded at his girlfriend.

Katy swallowed and gripped the shaft of her weapon tighter, her hands sliding with moisture. "You got me into this, you better get me out of it in one piece."

Christian's voice sounded from the blade beside her. "Always."


	12. Amends (Part 2)

**Amends (Part 2)**

_(I'm about to start back to school guys. I'm afraid I won't be able to update as often as I have been over my winter break. Keep your eyes peeled though! I'll keep writing!)_

Alex swung her arm up and her whip sprang up from the ground and lashed behind her before striking forward. Katy charged and side-stepped the first attack while swinging her naginata around in front of her and holding it like a lance. Alex stepped to the side and jerked her arm back. The whip came from behind Katy and struck her in the back. "Agh!" It wasn't enough to throw her off her feet, but damn, it hurt. The sting between her shoulder blades wasn't as frustrating as her attack being interrupted. When the whip was in front of her sight again, she had no choice but to stop and block. Katy held the shaft of her weapon before her and Cicero snaked through the air right between her eyes. The loose strips on the end wrapped around the shaft of the naginata and the electric shock raced straight from her palms to the very core of her body.

"Gyaah!" yelled Christian.

Katy spun her weapon like a windmill and drew in the end of the whip. Alex jerked back with all her might and now began a rather embarrassing tug-of-war while the next shock was charging from Cicero's handle.

"Come on, come on!" Rachele squeaked.

"Get inside," Tim whispered through his teeth.

Katy snapped her hands to the top of the shaft closest to the blade and slipped the end out of the whip's grasp. She wasted no time in closing the space between her and Alex. She spun and landed a heavy kick to her chest but it only knocked her back a step. Katy interrupted Alex's next swing with a slash that was aimed at her chest but Alex managed to turn her shoulder to it. Katy's opponent yelped but bounced back with a punch. She ducked and swiped Christian under Alex's feet. "Oof!"

Katy put her foot between Alex's breasts and Christian's blade under her throat. She sighed in relief. That wasn't that bad after all.

"Kate!" Christian shouted followed by Rachele's squeal in the background. She didn't even have time to fully turn her head before a sharp snap sounded next to her ear. White filled her vision in the second it took the other side of her head to hit the ground. Though her face was numb she could feel her blood running hot over her cheek and neck. Katy struggled to regain her wherewithal, instinctively pressing her hand to her face where she felt the blood coming from. Alex was back on her feet and Cicero was still in weapon form in her hand.

"Hey! That's not fair! Cicero attacked on her own! Alex wasn't controlling that hit!" Kian challenged.

"It's fair," Stein said dully, keeping his eyes on the fight. "Meister and weapon can fight as one or two, however they wish." Next to him Marie was biting her lip so hard it had turned white.

"Are you okay?" Christian's naked chest was heaving in the short blade. A spot of blood was showing under his long nose.

Katy swayed a little, feeling as if the blood was all coming from her brain. "I don't know if we can do this," she breathed.

"We can. I promise we can do this. Let's get in close range again, we'll have them both."

Alex kept Cicero's handle low and she stared at Katy with her sleeve now half drenched in red. "Are you okay," she said evenly.

She nodded quickly and wiped her bloody hand on her skinny jeans. "You?"

"Yeah."

"Ready?"

Alex nodded.

Katy sprinted forward with Christian in her right hand. When Alex snapped the whip, she switched Christian to her left and spun the shaft to deflect the strike and most of the shock. Once she was within four feet of the meister again, she knew her objective. If they were going to fight separately, then they should be separated.

Cicero sliced through the space behind Katy. Judging from the angle, she leaned deeply to one side and jabbed Christian's blade at Alex's side who jerked away from the prod with another yelp. Katy advanced and swung her partner again but Alex blocked with the handle of the whip. Targeting her wrist, she butted the shaft of the naginata at Alex's hand that held the whip to try and knock it out of her grasp but she had a good solid hold. Katy's opponent flipped backwards with a kick that was only haphazardly blocked by her weapon. She kept advancing. For every foot Alex moved back, Katy moved that much forward. She couldn't let her get more than seven feet away from her or she was within the most intense striking range of that horrid whip. By now the collar of Katy's fitted shirt was getting soggy with blood but she didn't have a moment to consider how much blood she was losing or how deep the gash on her face was. The numbness there had since left and been replaced with a deep sting that paired nicely with the sting in her back. She noticed her footwork wasn't as sharp anymore but it wasn't yet sloppy. Shock was affecting her—or maybe she was losing more blood than she thought. Whatever the cause, she had to get the upper hand before she got sloppy. If she allowed her coordination to fail her, she didn't have a chance.

Katy and Christian's friends still cheered here and there whenever they weren't holding their breath. They had since engaged in a fistfight, blocking and dodging and taking punches right and left. Katy used Christian to occasionally swipe from the other side or simply to balance herself when she dodged. But there was no throwing her off her feet right now. Her focus was still zeroed in on removing Cicero from Alex's grasp. Katy could tell she was getting mad. Her expression was nothing close to what it was when she asked her if she was okay and it was unlikely that she would take it easy from here. But that was all right because Katy didn't plan on taking it easy either.

"Rah!" Alex spun away from Christian's blade again. Now Katy noticed the resonance aura that surrounded her opponent. When did that happen? "Seismic Bolt!" Alex jerked the whip above her head and kicked off of Katy's shoulder, simultaneously knocking her to the ground. The whip twisted around in the air over everyone with pops of electricity before it waved down with an ear-splitting crack against the ground.

The stones broke in a spider web shape under them and every particle in the air was stimulated with a dense electric shock that vibrated the ground. The bystanders all struggled to maintain their balance but Katy was tossed a foot off the ground by the shock to her frame and slammed back down on the broken stones. Her muscles all twitched uncontrollably and a bit of drool slid from her lips while her lungs tried to remember what they were supposed to do. She heard her weapon give a quavering grunt of pain and Alex landed on her feet with Cicero gathering back beside her.

"Katy!" Rachele screamed. Kian stopped her from running forward.

She couldn't lift a finger before she felt the whip wrap around her ankle and jerk her closer to Alex. Her body knocked against the now uneven ground until she rested near her opponent's sneakers. Alex was panting and bleeding badly and Cicero was charging her next electric shock.

Dr. Stein closed his teeth and took a step forward ready to call the match.

"Katy," Christian said softly, "Let 'em hear our song."

She closed her eyes and breathed calmly. "Okay." Her fingers closed a little tighter around the shaft. She waited patiently until she felt the wind from their resonance aura against her face. It was strangely soothing. In her head she could hear Christian's flawless voice crescendo on a powerful string of notes.

The naginata started to glow. The blade on the end stretched out another foot and the edge became serrated. From the other end of the shaft an identical blade sprouted like a flower blooming. Alex's eyes went wide and she took a step back.

Katy inhaled deeply and back-flipped up to her feet, slinging the whip through the air with her. She heard Cicero's frantic exclamation to hurry and release her full charge, but Katy jabbed her weapon forward, catching the whip in the jagged edge of her blade and yanking the handle straight from Alex's distracted grip and tossing her on the ground far away. Her eyes now found the unarmed meister. "Angel's Fire!"

Christian's blades burst ablaze with such heat and intensity that the space around them was visually distorted. Katy spun her weapon over her head and around her with a great yell and swung a massive wall of fire at Alex. The force knocked her off her feet and sent her to the wall of the castle behind her with a hard thud.

"Yes!" Rachele jumped up in the air while Kian stared in awe.

William shifted his weight next to Odette. "Well, holy shit."

Alex coughed and sat up, slapping at some singes on her shirt. She looked up with blurry vision to find Christian's fiery blade at her neck again. "Okay!" she said angrily. "Get the hell away from me."

Katy stepped back as Christian's flames extinguished and he returned back to his original one-blade form. Her chest was heaving and her head was swimming. All she could think to do now was look at Dr. Stein. "Does that mean we win?"

A smirk appeared on his pale face. He lifted a hand. "Katy and Christian win."

"Oh, good." She plopped down on her butt, which unintentionally escalated to her back. She couldn't remember closing her eyes but everything went black and she could still hear Alex and Cicero's grumbles as they dispersed with Storm and Calkin mixed with her friends' excited cheering. But Christian's voice came louder and clearer, accompanied with his hands behind her shoulder and neck as he lifted her up off the stone. "I'm okay," she assured him dreamily.

"How do you feel, huh?"

She could hear the smile in his tone even though she couldn't see it. She started to smile a little too. "Pretty badass."

He gave his signature high-pitched chortle. "That's right! You are a badass for sure."

Katy's friends slid in beside her and she still spoke to Christian over their vehement congratulations. "I'm sorry I'm so negative all the time. I know… I can bum you out. I'm gonna try not to… be so pessimistic all the time… I'm gonna fix myself."

"I'm sorry I got so frustrated. But you know I'll be there all the way." He squeezed her hand.

The arms that felt like home wrapped around her and picked her up and she immediately knew it to be Tim. She leaned into his chest with a little smile as he carried her back into the castle. "I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you too."


	13. The Best Teacher

**The Best Teacher**

The next day, Katy was hulled up in her bedroom with her studying materials and a can of mixed nuts to snack on with her favorite black cherry soda. She sat with her knees up on her bed and switched between finishing a practice question for science and playing a card game online—which strangely helped her concentration even if it made it last a little longer. This was the life really. Alone in her room with her pajamas on and good snacks and not to mention being excused from her classes today due to her injuries. After Dr. Stein had checked her wounds and used surgical tape to pull the gashes back together and secured them with a patch, he gave her some medication for the pain. She hadn't taken any since she got up this morning. It made her fairly drowsy and she was afraid she wouldn't finish what studying she had planned to get done today if she took anymore. But it was all right. It didn't hurt too badly and she was enjoying her alone time immensely.

A knock came to her door. "Come in," she said reflexively. Christian was probably checking on her again.

The door to her bedroom opened and her entire gang of friends piled in. Katy gasped and hid behind her pillow. Christian laughed. "What's wrong?"

"I look like crap! Why is everyone here?!"

"We wanted to come see you!" Odette said happily and sat down in one of her chairs.

"And make sure you were okay." Kian leaned against the wall.

Katy self-consciously tended to her messy ponytail. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for coming to check on me but you didn't have to."

Tim sat next to her on the bed and gently held her chin to inspect the gash on her face. "So, none of them needed stitches?"

"Nah. Couldn't have been stitched easily anyways. Skin moves too much."

"Stein fixed you up well." He kissed beside the wound.

William stepped forward with a covered plate in his hand. "Hey. These are for you." He set it on the bed beside her.

Katy gasped and took the cover off. "… Sugar cookies?" She looked up at him and smiled in spite of the twinge in her cheek. "You made me cookies, William?"

He shrugged. "Yeah."

"Aw!" Kian hopped forward and picked one up. "Look at this! William's a regular Betty Crocker!" Rachele covered her mouth to keep from laughing too hard.

"What's the big deal? Who doesn't like sugar cookies?" William put his hands in his pockets.

Katy picked one up, too. "Does he do this a lot, Odette?"

"Not typically dessert. But he does bake and cook a lot." She smiled.

Kian took a bite. "Mm! Delicious! Good job, man." He gave William a pat on the shoulder.

Katy did, too, and her reaction was much the same. "For the record, you can make me cookies any time you want." Now everyone leaned forward to have a taste.

"So, that was some awesome skill yesterday, Kate," Nikki said around her mouthful of sweets.

"Yeah! We'd never seen that before!" Rachele praised.

"We hadn't done it in forever. Perfect timing though, huh?" Christian grinned.

"Yeah, did you see the look on their faces? Haha! I wish I could have taken a picture," giggled Nikki.

"You really did an outstanding job, Katy. We're all proud of you." Odette gave her a warm smile.

Christian sidled closer to Odette. "Oh, I got hurt, too."

Odette faced him. "You did? Aw," she said sympathetically, "The electric charges?"

"Yeah, it got me good. But I had to make sure Katy was all right so I hung in there." He shrugged modestly.

Nikki rolled her eyes with obvious exaggeration and Rachele and Katy giggled.

"You were wonderful, Christian. I'm proud of you, too." She patted his cheek. He couldn't help a wide grin with a goofy chuckle.

"Are you both going to be okay for our resonance training tonight?" said Kian with another mouthful of cookie.

"Yeah. We feel okay enough I think. Besides, I'm interested to see how far we get tonight." Katy gave a confident smile.

_(Page Break)_

The four meisters stood around the fat candle with their eyes closed and their minds all connected. Katy and Rachele occasionally giggled, apparently sharing jokes with each other silently while they all sent thoughts out (whether they meant to or not) and intersected them and tried to process what it was and who it was from. It was as if they had created their own game with each other in this void where their minds all converged. Some thoughts were easy to discern—such as "hungry" which most often seemed to come from Christian. Other thoughts were more complicated—thoughts that didn't necessarily have an adjective to describe them. They were more like feelings with no names. Katy was pleased to find out that she decoded every thought from Tim successfully even though it took him a little longer to figure hers out. Nikki's seemed simple usually. She and Kian both sounded a very similar note of angst and impatience as if they were ready to get on to the next thing before anyone else was—though their sound still meshed with everyone else's effectively. Rachele's were easy to figure out. Her thoughts and feelings were exactly what they were and they weren't typically muddled with anything unidentifiable. Everything in Rachele had a place no matter how random or off-the-wall it might have seemed. This made her friends smile. They all knew she was genuine but to have it confirmed in such a personal and beautiful way was very satisfying. Odette and William's thoughts were the hardest to figure out. Everyone heard his piano just fine and it made a very clear sound but it didn't really sound like anything anyone in the group was used to hearing. As expected, his sound did invoke the occasional dose of anxiety or panic—but that was pretty much it. William's sound could only be described as edgy and unpredictable. And yet this was all he put out into the void. Actual thoughts and true feelings were entirely absent. Odette's were there. But they were very quiet, very stern. She seemed to control how much she allowed her friends to hear as well, as if she were merely focusing on reading everyone else and nothing more was on her mind at all.

Their resonance was interrupted when Dr. Stein spoke up. "You all are doing very well. I think it's about time to figure out who the team leader is."

"A team leader?" Nikki said from her weapon form with interest.

"Yes. In some cases the leader is constant and permanent. In others the leader changes depending on the battle. It depends on who feels what when facing their foe. Whatever it may be, experience with the style the enemy uses to fight or maybe you had a really good breakfast that morning and you're just more on the ball than the rest." Dr. Stein threw his cigarette in the leaves and stepped on it. "When Soul and Maka's team fought, Maka was always the leader. That's just how it was; it was how she fit with her team. If I had to make a bet, your situation will be different. I would venture to guess that you have a different leader depending on who you're fighting and when."

"Is that a good thing?" Odette sounded hesitant.

"It's not a bad thing as long as you have very good communication with each other. So!" Dr. Stein stuck his hand out for Miss Marie. She took it and her body was swallowed in white light as she took her hefty hammer form. "Let's see who it is today!" he sang while smacking the head of the big hammer against his palm.

"Don't you think you should, like, teach us how to figure out the leader first?" Katy said nervously.

Dr. Stein casually took off his glasses and handed them to Soul who took them with a sharp smirk. "I strongly believe that experience is the best teacher." The scientist snapped his arm out and the hammer smashed into Rachele's torso with a quick electric spark and sent her flying into a tree trunk.

"OW!" she screamed—more out of frustration than pain. Her comrades all scrambled to their fighting stances and Odette sprang forward, swinging the great sword around her at their instructor. Stein blocked effortlessly with the hammer and ducked the next swing before striking her the same way he did Rachele and right into another tree. Tim ricocheted off a nearby branch to spin the shuriken at the professor's exposed shoulder though it was smoothly side-stepped. Tim was also flung into the ground by Marie's bombarding strike.

Stein mostly stayed in one spot and only turned to swat them away like flies. "You're not communicating," he called out, "Want to see how long you'll last like this?" He thrust his hand forward at Katy's chest and sent her sliding through the leaves from his direct soul wavelength attack.

And he was right. They weren't communicating. It was so easy to find each other when they were all quiet and standing still and not doing anything _but _communicating with each other. But now they were trying not to be on the receiving end of that hammer that always felt worse than it looked. There was no chance of them getting a single attack to land until they could hear the music again. Tim attempted to coordinate. "We need to come from different angles and stay out of each others' way!" He hurled Nikki towards Stein.

The teacher ducked and Rachele squealed when the shuriken crashed into Grae's white blade and threw her down. Stein popped back up. "Yes. You do." He reached down and picked up the shuriken. "You also need to not _shout_ your _strategy." _He threw Nikki back at Tim and the boy only barely caught her.

There was a unison grumble amongst the students as they blocked attacks the best they could before trying to hone their focus on each others' minds. When they all had returned to the void as Dr. Stein continued his merciless barrage, there was a lot more being passed between them. So much of it was just noise that was unrecognizable but they eventually started to hear Nikki's voice. Her song was breaking away from the unison melody she held that so closely matched Christian's. While this conclusion was being derived, Tim had found a spot close range that gave him the best striking position and had begun to force their teacher back a step or two. That was it! Tim was the team's leader.

_Kian caught onto Nikki's melody and started sawing away on his cello to follow along at her pace. Once he found her direction, he closed his eyes and leaned into the chords, playing boldly and richly as a smile started to creep up. It was fast and bouncy and it made him feel like dancing. Soon he no longer needed to follow along—he felt it in his bones and it was pouring out through his fingers into his instrument and out into the whiteness, never overpowering Nikki's lead but never straying an inch from her song._

Rachele twisted out of Stein's sight behind him and sharply swung the scythe against his back while her opponent also took a strike from Katy's naginata. "This is it!" the ginger called out. They were doing it!

_William's fingers bounced off the piano keys all up and down the keyboard and he didn't even try to make his eyes keep up. He simply followed Kian's cello, Christian's back-up vocals and Nikki's lead. It wasn't hard to play along; he was familiar with this speed and the sporadic jumping from one note to the next. But it wasn't easy with that dark figure looming over his shoulder, making malicious clicking sounds in his ear. William kept his eyes forward and let his fingers run wild on the keys and tried to ignore the sticky black hair that fell on his shoulder and brushed his cheek. He breathed quicker to compensate for the musty darkness he was inhaling due to his overseer's proximity._

Odette doubled behind Rachele and sprang over her to swing at Stein from above. When he ducked, Rachele caught him below with the hook of her scythe and very nearly unbalanced him.

_The inky figure put its chin over William's shoulder and turned where its mouth should be to his ear and lifted a long bony hand with charcoal skin to whisper. William's eyes went wide and his lips twitched. His fingers didn't miss a beat but now he suddenly banged on the keys with such adamant force that the sound vibrated his ribs. His chest started heaving as the black ghostly figure let its hand slip away from his shoulder._

"HRAH!" Odette thrust her hand forward with a bright flash of her blue soul wavelength, sending Stein backwards against a tree where he slid down into the leaves with the hammer by his side. Tim swept up and put Nikki's blade at his neck. The rest of the students stood around with panting breaths.

Dr. Stein started to laugh low in his throat. His head rolled on his neck until he was looking up at Tim. "Congratulations. You pass."

Every student slouched and loosened their limbs with their weapons hanging beside them. Soul started to clap and Marie changed back to her human form and helped the scientist stand up.

_William's hands slipped off the keys and he stared down at them, feeling light-headed and still out of breath. His hands were shaking a little so he tried to breathe more calmly. But he knew it wasn't going to happen._

_ He roughly scooted back in the bench and jumped up, not bothering to straighten his tuxedo as he stormed up to the black figure and stared about two feet up into its empty face. His nostrils flared and his heaving chest pulled his vest tight with each inhale as his eyes sharpened to piercing strength. "Leave her alone," he growled through his teeth._

_ The shadow's head jerked sideways and cocked as it made a crackling moaning sound and slowly floated towards him._

_ William snarled and tightened his fists by his sides._

"Great job, everyone!" Marie congratulated sweetly.

Dr. Stein leaned backwards with his hands on his hips to pop his lower back. "It seems—this time Tim and Nikki had it figured out. But my bet is still that your leader will not be constant. Your communication skills are good but they're not great. The more you fight while resonating with everyone, the better you will get. We will do more training." He started walking back to the castle. "Tomorrow."

Christian snickered, having also turned back to his human form. "We pack too much heat for ya, Doc?"

"You wish." He looked over his shoulder with a rather unsettling grin, his eyes completely hidden due to the overwhelming firelight glossing his glasses. Marie walked beside him with her hands behind her back and Soul brought up the rear with his lazy saunter.

The students all looked at each other. "Uh… Is anyone else scared now?" Christian pointed a thumb at their teacher.

"Don't boast, idiot! He could kill us if he wanted to!" Katy punched the blonde's shoulder.

"Still, that was really good, guys. I think we should all go out for pizza!" Rachele suggested.

Kian clapped his hands. "Done and done!" They started to walk towards the school.

Odette tapped her fingers on the handle of the zanbato. "Hey, William, you want to go eat pizza with everyone?" She looked at the wide black blade, waiting to see his image appear. But he didn't show up and he didn't reply. "… William?" She tapped her fingernail on the shiny part of his blade. Nothing.

"You coming, Odette?" Tim stopped and looked back at her.

She lifted her chin. "Don't worry, I'll catch up with you guys later. I think we're just gonna go back and chill. Thanks!" When the group kept walking she held the giant sword in both hands and looked down at it, only seeing her own fuzzy reflection. She stood like this for a while and waited to hear him say something—anything. But he didn't. And he never showed his face. Odette sighed and held the zanbato against her, cradling it carefully as she walked back to the castle alone.


	14. Black Blood

**Black Blood**

Odette softly laid the zanbato on the bed in his room. For a while she stood and stared down at it, still waiting for him to change back or say something to her. But her weapon was silent and lifeless as she carried it back to the castle and up to their dorm. It was a little unsettling. He'd never done this before. Was it possible that he couldn't hear her? Or maybe he was stuck? How would one become stuck in their weapon form? Nevertheless, there was nothing she could do about it now. Perhaps if he wasn't human tomorrow she should take him to Dr. Stein. Maybe he would know how to help him. Odette walked out of his room and closed the door to—but not all the way closed. She stole one last peek at his sleek black blade before walking away softly to her own room.

_Odette blinked a few times to see through the darkness ahead of her. Everything was black with the exception for tiny dots of orange light in the distance that seemed to be from candles. She instinctively began walking towards them, noticing that her steps made a noise on the hard floor. She must be wearing heels though she honestly couldn't tell. The material that brushed her sides reminded her of silk. She had to be wearing a dress. She could feel that it was gathered at the sides. Regardless of what she was wearing, she had to go towards those candles so that she could start to see something._

_ When the candlelight had grown to a sufficient intensity, she could make out scarce furniture: a piano and its bench and the tall stands on which the candles were perched. She blinked at a figure that seemed to be sitting on the floor leaned over the bench. Odette kept her steps careful. "… William?"_

_ He lifted his head though it was still too dark to see his face from the angle he was sitting. Though she could see he was dressed in a white tuxedo—and it was smudged with something. He started to stand and approach rather briskly._

_ Odette picked up her long skirt with both hands and moved her feet a little faster to meet him but she stopped abruptly when he reached from either side of him and pulled two giant barred gates closed with a loud clang. "… What are you doing?"_

_ He stepped back away from the bars a step—a step she could see was laden with fatigue or pain. He kept a hand pressed against his brow._

_ The redhead approached the bars and the candles shone an orange light on her white evening gown and on his face. Black blood had streamed from his brow and nose down to his chin. "What happened to you?" She gripped the bars between them and tried to pull the gate open but it was locked. "William, let me in."_

_ "What are you doing here," he said in a husky tone, not taking a step towards her to open the gate he had closed._

_ "I—I don't know. I just kind of woke up here—what are you doing here? Why are you hurt?"_

_ His green eyes looked back at her with stern apology._

_ She blinked at him and her heart started to beat faster. "… William, let me in."_

_ He shook his head softly._

_ "You're hurt, let me in. Let me help you." She put her arm through the bars and reached for him, craning her fingers out towards him for him to take her hand—to just come closer so she could touch him._

_ "… I'm sorry."_

_ Odette suddenly gripped the bars and started to shake them. "Then come out! Please!"_

_ "I can't."_

_ Her breath turned ragged. "William, you're scaring me. Please tell me what's happening. Tell me what's going on."_

_ His eyes suddenly went wide and he stepped up to the bars and put his hand through. "Odette—"_

_ She grasped his hand immediately but became distracted by hot fluid cascading over her lips. She used her other hand to touch her upper lip to find it painted in black blood. "Will…" Her vision went sideways. Her hand slipped from his strong grasp and his frantic voice saying her name again faded in her ears._

Odette gasped when her body jolted on her mattress. She sharply sat up in bed and tossed her covers off with her chest heaving and shining with sweat. After a moment of staring into the dark of her room she looked to her alarm clock to find the time to be 3:03 am. She sighed heavily, feeling a little nauseous. Odette drank from the water bottle she kept on her nightstand and wiped the sweat from her brow. She froze when she heard a door squeak open in the living room. Without hesitating, she jumped out of bed and left her room and shuffled down the hall in her pajamas. She turned on the kitchen light and William was immediately illuminated with no shirt and blue pajama bottoms beside the refrigerator with his hand on its handle. Her breath was still fast as she stared at him, her eyes rather wide for having turned on such a bright light in the dark. He was squinting. "Are you okay?" she said in nearly a squeak.

"… Yeah. Why?"

She swallowed to try and calm herself down. "You… didn't change back after our fight with Stein. For a long time."

He blinked. "I came back to the dorm with you. You said you didn't want to get pizza so we came back instead of going out."

"No—I told them—I wasn't going but it was because you weren't answering me. You stayed in zanbato form and I carried you back here and laid you on your bed." She started to raise her voice.

His voice got softer. "… You did?"

"Yes."

His eyes drifted down. "… I thought I—"

"You didn't."

He looked back at her and scratched his naked abdominals. Had he really been there that long? "I'm sorry."

"What happened?"

"… I guess I got distracted."

"By what?" She stepped closer and her voice wasn't so gentle.

He inhaled and opened the fridge and ducked into it and set out a block of cheese before getting out a pot and a can of soup.

"You're not going to tell me are you."

He took the can opener out of the drawer. "Not now."

She sighed in frustration and turned a circle, running both hands through her messy hair. But she stopped. She promised she was going to be more patient. Odette released a steady breath and leaned on the counter. "Well, I'm glad you're back."

He nodded silently, putting the can opener to the can and starting to turn it.

"… I had a dream."

The can opener slipped and William jerked to snatch it. He clenched his teeth tightly shut behind his lips and tried to breathe calmly too as he put the can opener back in place and kept turning. "What was it about," he asked flatly. But he didn't need to.

She opened her mouth to speak but then closed it again and licked her lips. "It was weird. But I think I was just worried about you."

He looked at her softly. "I'm all right."

Odette dipped her chin to nod. "Okay. Well. Goodnight." She walked back to her room.

"Goodnight." He waited to hear her door shut. William took in a deep breath and set both hands on the counter far apart and bowed his head. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe through the anger and the panic. But soon he started to quietly pace with his hand grabbing a handful of hair on the back of his head. This wasn't supposed to happen. He had to get a grip on this before it got a grip on her.

_(Page Break)_

Stein stepped out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his hips. He stood in front of the mirror and lazily wiped away enough of the steam on the glass to see his face. His reflection stared back at him in apathy and fatigue. The dark circles under his eyes seemed to sag further and the wrinkles there had become more apparent. His reflection started to smirk. And then it spoke. "What's the matter?"

He only stared back and kept his lips closed.

"Hm." His reflection's shoulder moved and held up a scalpel in his sight and raised his eyebrows with a grin. "Hm?"

Stein kept watching with his arms by his sides. The scalpel in the mirror was placed directly under his breastbone between nicely formed pectorals. It slid down and the skin became separated by a red line, creating a four-inch long incision. The reflection kept smiling before lifting his other hand and inserting his fingers into the opening. Stein didn't blink and watched his own hand become buried in his chest in the glass. It sunk in up to the wrist. He could almost feel it groping around under his ribs, reaching under his breast.

The reflection barely showed his teeth, pupils shrunken to dots in his green irises. "Where is it?"

Soft hands reached through his arms and to his front. A warm hug was pressed against his back. Stein blinked at the mirror, his image mimicking his own face and intact chest again. Marie's gentle lips pressed against his naked shoulder blade before her warm cheek replaced her kiss. Stein breathed steadily and quietly, still staring at his reflection. After a moment of them standing this way with her front pressed to his back he turned around, securing the towel on his hips and looked down at her. She looked up at him with that expression he had seen a thousand times before. "I'm okay," he assured.

She nodded. "… Tea?"

"Sure."

Marie let her hands slip away from his chest and she left the bathroom to go boil some water.

Stein went to his bedroom to get dressed, first giving the bathroom mirror another glance and turning off the light.


	15. Common Interests

**Common Interests**

_(So sorry for the delay, guys! Senior year of college is super demanding! I appreciate your patience!)_

Christian sighed in the quiet room of scratching pencils. All around him his classmates had their heads bowed with their eyes intensely focused on the paper before them and most all of them were writing their answers. He subtly glanced around him to his friends to see how they were doing. He only shared this class with his sister and William. Nikki was three rows down with her pencil going to work. Of course. She would probably ace this test—just like she aced everything she ever did. He looked for William but found his usual seat to be empty. It was then he noticed William was approaching Sid with his paper in his hand. No. There's no way he could be done. But Sid took it and nodded at him. And there he went. Seriously?! He finished already? The blonde ducked his head a little and jutted his jaw forward in jealousy. Finishing exams was not all William had on him to be jealous over though. There was no way he could focus on his exam now. All he could think about was William going back to his dorm and sitting on his bed and making out with Odette. And he was probably taking his shirt off and showing his stupid twenty-six year old abs and stupid twenty-six year old chest muscles and Odette drooling on them. Christian self-consciously felt his own moderately toned but not muscular chest. It wasn't fair.

An idea sparked. Perhaps there was a way to know about his chances with Odette. Christian quietly slipped out a piece of notebook paper from his book bag and started to scribble on it. He laid down his pencil and wadded the paper up and leaned forward in his seat, aiming with his tongue sticking out of his mouth before he tossed the paper wad.

It struck Nikki in the back of the head and she loudly scoffed in irritation and whirled around, slinging her dark shiny hair. Her piercing blue eyes fell on him and he wasted no time in silently mouthing, "Read it!" while pointing at the paper in the floor.

"What?" she mouthed back in the quiet.

"Read it!" he whispered.

"Mr. James," Sid said from the front of the room. "Down here."

Christian sighed and let his forehead fall to his desk in defeat. He pulled himself out of his seat and walked down the steps to the front of the class. Nikki watched him as others looked on and snickered.

"You can sit down here for the remainder of the exam." The zombie pointed to the floor beside him.

Christian grumbled and took his seat. "I wasn't cheating."

"You know, back when I was alive, students didn't have the audacity to—"

"Oh my God, nobody cares," the blonde mumbled towards his lap.

Sid swiftly swiped up a thick book from his desk and whacked him in the back of his head so hard that Christian fell forward. The class now laughed with no discretion as Christian lay on the floor and squeaked. "Back to work, everyone." Sid leaned back against his desk once again.

As the students looked back to their tests, Nikki quietly picked up the crumpled paper and opened it in her lap. "_I need you to use your girl-talk power and find out if Odette likes William please!" _She looked up and tried to catch his gaze but it seemed Sid had made him face the whiteboard. Nikki closed her teeth behind her lips and stuffed the paper into her bag and went back to finishing her test.

After she had finished her exam, Nikki went to go eat lunch alone before going to Odette and William's dorm. Odette let her in and offered her some coffee, which Nikki took graciously and sat on the couch with her. They talked for a while about the test she had just taken in Sid's class. Odette had apparently finished it that morning and was finished for the day until their training session tonight. Nikki hadn't forgotten her assignment. When her window of opportunity came up, she took advantage of it. "Is William here?" she leaned to the side to peer down the hall towards his room.

"No, he's not. Did he finish the test before you?"

"Yeah, he did. He didn't come back here?"

"No, I guess not. Maybe he had some other stuff he wanted to do." She shrugged.

"He seems to really go by his own schedule, doesn't he," Nikki said while watching her face and gripping her coffee mug in both hands.

"He really does. But that's okay. It doesn't bother me. Except when he's gone for a really long time and he doesn't answer his phone. You never can tell with him." Odette leaned comfortably against the back cushion of the couch and pulled her feet up under her as she took a sip of her own beverage.

Nikki noticed her mannerisms didn't seem to convey any nervousness or uneasiness about speaking of him. "So… just curious, but… Do you like him? Like, are you attracted to him?"

Odette blinked at Nikki but she didn't look surprised or caught off guard at all. She inhaled before speaking carefully. "I think he's attractive. Would I date him?" She shook her head. "I don't think so."

Now the brunette blinked but more in confusion than anything else. "Why?"

The redhead held her mug in her lap. "Don't get me wrong. Deep down he's a great guy. He just… lacks some things that I prefer a boyfriend to have."

Perhaps Nikki should start taking some mental notes. Surely her brother would want her to. But it wasn't just for her brother. "What kinds of things?"

"Well, like, I want my boyfriend to be sensitive and always aware of my feelings and aware of his own feelings and I want him to communicate with me and I want us to share personal information with each other. And it's not that William is flawed because he doesn't do all that. It's just who he is. And I respect that. I just prefer men who are those things and do those things. And I just… I don't know that William will ever be that man."

Nikki nodded understandingly and it was quiet for a moment as they each looked into their coffee. Her finger traced the rim of her mug. "Do you want him to be that man?"

Again Odette prepared her words with caution. "… I want him to be himself. But I also want him to be the best he can be. For his own sake… I don't want him to hurt himself. Mentally or emotionally." Now Odette looked down and closed her mouth. But before Nikki could question further, Odette looked back up at her. "Why did you want to know?"

She shrugged. "Like I said, just curious. You've been partners for a long time now."

"I love William. He's a wonderful friend. He takes care of me, even if he is oblivious so much of the time. He really tries… What about you? You got a thing for anyone?" Odette perched her elbow on the arm of the couch.

Nikki's nostrils twitched and she felt her face grow warm. "What?"

"Tim?" Odette sang. "It's okay to have a crush on someone's boyfriend."

"Oh. No," she chuckled. "Tim's great. He's just a little…"

"Nerdy?"

"In a good way. Just not my type."

Now Odette laughed. "He and Katy are really cute together, aren't they?"

"They are. Too cute sometimes." She rolled her eyes. The two girls went on talking about couples at the academy and Nikki was surprised to learn about Alex and Cicero, but only for a moment. It actually made more sense. Once Nikki had finished her coffee she bid goodbye to Odette until the evening when they would continue their training. She went back to her dorm and quickly acknowledged Tim and Katy who were watching a movie on the couch and slipped into her bedroom and shut the door. Nikki flopped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. So, Odette didn't want to date William. That was good news. She quickly typed a text message to her brother to let him know how the talk went but her gaze was still vacant as she looked through the window beside her. Nikki's hand slowly slid down beside her mattress and her fingers tucked under it and felt around until she found the photograph. She pulled it up to her and lay on her side with her knees up under her chin. She held the picture in both hands and stared for a long time, as she always did when she took it out. Soon her finger traced the outline of his broad shoulders and her eyes focused on his wrinkled brow with his face turned towards the setting sun. The pinkish-orange light delicately lit up his face. Odette didn't want to date him. That was good news.

_(Page Break)_

William stood by Dr. Stein's classroom as students filtered out carrying their books and backpacks and chattering to each other. When there was a break in the flood he slipped in and approached the scientist's desk and didn't waste time. "I don't want to do the group training anymore."

Dr. Stein didn't even glance at him as he erased the diagram he had drawn on the board. "And why is that," he said flatly.

"Because resonating with Odette is bad for her and I don't want to do it anymore."

The teacher turned around and started sorting his things from his desk back into his bag. "Lord Death has chosen you to be a part of the group he sends to the East. I'm afraid you have to continue the training."

"The black blood is getting in her through me more and more. And it gets worse after every time we resonate."

"You knew that was going to happen. We all knew it was going to happen. That's why you and Odette were supposed to continue your private sessions with me. But you didn't want to." He said simply as he sat down in his rolling chair, the classroom now completely empty except for the two of them.

"How do I keep it from happening," William said evenly.

"You can't keep it from happening. As long as you two are partners, she will always be infected and it will never go away—"

"What if we weren't partners anymore."

"She's already infected. It's not going to go away. If you weren't partners anymore, it would only probably stop the spread of it—"

"Okay." He nodded.

Dr. Stein looked up at him, the light glinting from his glasses. "You think Odette would be okay with that proposal?"

William looked down at the surface of his desk and rubbed the back of his neck.

"You two are a great team. And she likes you. And you like her. I don't recommend splitting up."

"Well, could you do some kind of transfusion on me? Could you take the black blood out of me?" He asked eagerly.

"That would only work temporarily. Your brain is what infects your blood, William. I could replace your blood with regular blood and in a week it would be black again."

"Then what about my brain?"

Dr. Stein leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his head with a throaty giggle. "Brain transplant, huh? Of course I can. But that's frowned upon I'm afraid. And I no longer have access to such tools."

William narrowed his eyes.

"Don't ask." The doctor sharply twisted the screw in his head once.

William sighed and leaned forward with his hands on the teacher's desk. "I'm—desperate, okay? It's getting to her and I have to stop it."

"As I've told you before, you can't stop it. You can only manage it and try to keep it under control. And the only way you can do that is if you listen to me."

"We've done the talking-to-each-other thing. She even—she made up a game where we—… We're communicating now; I get it. That's what you wanted. We're doing that and it's not helping."

"There's something else we can try. But you're not going to like it." Dr. Stein shifted his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"What is it."

He looked up at him seriously and laced his fingers in front of him. "I show you how to help each other keep it in check while you're resonating… by resonating with me."

William blinked. "… You mean like me, Odette, you and Marie?"

"No. You and I."

He lowered his chin. "… You and me," he confirmed with disdain.

Dr. Stein nodded.

"… How in the world would _anyone _benefit from the two sociopaths of the academy resonating?

"We can understand each other. You and I have that ability and others here don't."

William kept watching his eyes. He really was serious. "Why can't I just hang out with Lord Death again? When I first came here, he and I would train together and we did fine. That's how I got to where I am now; him and Odette calmed me down. And Marie."

"I'm afraid Lord Death has his hands full with the situation in the East. He doesn't have the time to devote to you that he did when you were new here. This is our last shot."

The younger man sighed heavily and looked around the classroom, hoping another idea would come to him.

The teacher caught his attention again. "I'm asking you to trust me this one time. You and I can help each other if we can just get on the same page. Your concern is Odette, correct?"

He clenched his jaw and stared at the floor.

"I am concerned about her as well. Let her wellbeing be your impetus. You would do anything to protect her. And I'm offering you a chance to do that. And…" Dr. Stein stood up and went around his desk and lazily leaned on it beside him. "If it doesn't work, I'll do the blood transfusion."

William looked up at him.

"It's not fool proof. And we will have to do it weekly. And you will be very fatigued. But it will delay the spread and buy us some time until we figure out what else we can do."

He watched the man's eyes. They didn't seem threatening. But almost every time he interacted with Dr. Stein, his eyes never seemed like anything at all. And that was worse. It made him cringe to his very core to think that he could be submitting to be his experimental specimen with agreeing to be his weapon partner temporarily. But what choice did he have?

Dr. Stein stuck out his hand to shake. William sighed through his nose. But he grasped it and gave it a firm shake.


End file.
